Rising
by Phoenix MetaBlade
Summary: It's Christmas in the Leaf Village! What chaos will occur? I suck at summaries, story is better. Plz R&R!
1. Chapter 1

-1Rising

Chapter 1-A New Arrival!

AUTHOR'S NOTE: This fic takes place during Naruto: Shippuden.

"Naruto!! Lee!! I need help here!!" Sakura yelled while dodging a flurry of kunai. Sakura charged chakra in her palm and slammed into one of the enemy ninja. He went screaming away while reinforcements charged in.

"Shadow Clone Jutsu!" Naruto cloned himself and he and the clones ran to help Sakura. Meanwhile Lee had jumped in after defeating about seven of the enemy ninja. "Leaf Hurricane!" Lee does two flying kicks into one of the enemies. That dude went flying, Team Rocket style.

Naruto reaches Lee and Sakura and takes out the group of enemy ninja surrounding them using a specialized version of Uzumaki Barrage. "Damn, they're still coming!" Naruto yelled while forming Rasengan to take out two armored ninjas. More ninjas just kept flowing in like a river. Naruto, Sakura, and Lee were back-to-back against about 50 of the enemy. "Naruto, do you have enough chakra for a Multi Shadow Clone Jutsu?!?" Sakura yelled.

"No! I can't make anymore! I'm exhausted!" "What about using the Kyubi's Chakra?" Lee asked him. "I wish, but I haven't been able to access his Chakra lately. I dunno why." Naruto whispered. "Any ideas?" Sakura said. Just before the ninjas were about to stab them to death, a mysterious set of speed blurs moved between the ninja. Naruto, Sakura, and Lee looked on in shock. One moment, the enemy ninjas were ready to fight; the next, they hit the ground dead, their throats slit.

In a matter of about 10 seconds, 50 ninja had been killed. Eventually the blurs stopped. A mysterious figure appeared. "Who are you?" Sakura asked the figure. "The name's Darkblade." Darkblade stood almost as tall as Naruto, with a lean frame. He wore a black bandana, shades, and a black mask. He had a black shirt on with a black vest over it. On his arms he had handwraps covered with leather straps. He had black pants and black sandals. He carried a ninjaken on his back, and a shuriken holster on his right thigh.

"Thanks for helping us." Lee said. "I thought you could use some help. Besides, the leader of these ninja is around here somewhere…" Darkblade told them. "Why are you looking for the leader?" Naruto asked him. "Well, he's got a bounty on his head, and I'm going to collect-there he is! I'm not letting you escape!" Darkblade leaps after the enemy leader, eyes focused, sword brandished.

"That was…interesting, but, technically we still completed the mission." Naruto said. "Let's head back to the village." Lee replied. Naruto, Sakura, and Lee started back towards the Hidden Leaf Village, their mission having been technically completed.

The enemy leader thought to himself, _"What an idiot assassin to think he can catch me, Ozu! The leader of the great Watariga Shinobi! Heh heh heh…what a fool."_ Suddenly, Darkblade appears behind him, his sword against the leader's neck. "Now, what were you saying about me being a fool?" Darkblade grins evilly. "No! Please! Don't! AAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!!!" Darkblade kicked the leader off the tree, where he fell to his death. "Three jobs in one day. Whew! I'm wiped! Time to catch some Z's." Darkblade starts on his journey back to his home…the Hidden Leaf Village.

What do you think? Plz R&R!


	2. Chapter 2

-1Rising

Chapter 2-New Bloodline Revealed!

AUTHOR'S NOTE: This takes place during Naruto: Shippuden. (Just in case you don't remember.)

Raven Ashcrest was on his way to a clearing where he would undergo a survival exercise. Raven was 15, almost as tall as Naruto, with a lean frame and green eyes. He had blue hair curled back to resemble hedgehog spikes. He wore a blue shirt with the Ashcrest symbol, a lightning bolt, on the back, covered by a black Chunin vest with the Leaf Village swirl on it. On his arms were hand wraps. He wore black pants with a shuriken holster on his right thigh. A ninjaken was strapped to his back. "Hmm…about 2 more minutes to the clearing. Cool." Raven was on his way.

"NARUTO!!! GET BACK HERE!!" Sakura's angry scream resounded throughout the village. Naruto, coincidentally, was sprinting, with Sakura chasing him down, toward the clearing where Raven was heading.

_Earlier that day…_

Sai goes up to Sakura. "Hey, Sakura, I got a question." "Sure Sai, what is it?" Sai replies, "How many guys have you slept with?" Sakura became enraged at the question. "WHO TOLD YOU TO ASK THAT?" Sai replied, "I'm not selling him out." Sakura slams her fist into Sai's face and he goes flying through a fence. Sakura walks up to him and goes, "Now, who told you to ask that?" "Naruto wanted me to ask that…thank you, come again." Sai told her, dazed. "Thanks, Sai. NARUTO!" Sakura started running after Naruto.

Raven had finally made it to the clearing when Naruto dashes by him. Naruto grabs him and puts Raven behind him. Raven is confused when Sakura runs into him. BAM! Raven ends up on the ground with Sakura on top of him. He looks up at her and thinks…_Damn, she's hot! _All he manages is "Hi." Sakura gets up and Raven pulls himself up. "Sorry! I didn't mean to…run into you like that. I'm Sakura Haruno. And you are?" "I'm Raven. Raven Ashcrest. Nice to meet you, Sakura."

Raven then realizes something. "Oh, crap! I have a survival exercise to get to! Bye, Sakura! Nice to meet you!" Raven then runs off to his survival exercise. Sakura thought… _Survival exercise? He means the bell test by Kakashi-sensei. I wonder how he'll do?" _Sakura then decides to watch to exercise and climbs a nearby tree with a good view.

Raven finally gets to the clearing, where he's greeted by Kakashi. "Ah, good morning! I presume you're Raven?" "You're correct, Kakashi of the Sharingan Eye," Raven replied. "Ah, so you know me. Right then, shall we begin? All you have to do is grab this bell from me before the clock rings." "Well then, what are we waiting for?!" Raven exclaimed, eager to begin. "Go." "Raisengan!" Raven exclaims.

Then his eyes change from green to blue, with red slash marks appearing behind his iris in the shape of a Y. Then, three tomoe manifest themselves on the end of the slash marks. Sakura witnesses this from a tree. She thinks to herself…_He has a kekkei genkai? I've never seen this one!_

Raven rushes at Kakashi and unleashes a flurry of kunai. Kakashi simply jumps back and makes incredibly fast hand signs. Raven copies them perfectly. "Fire Style: Fire Ball Jutsu!!" Raven and Kakashi each blow a giant fireball and they cancel each other out. Naruto sees this from a different tree and thinks…_Whoa! He copied Kakashi-sensei's perfectly even though they were incredibly fast._ Raven focuses his chakra and clones himself. "Shadow Mist Clone Jutsu!" Raven and the eight clones rush at Kakashi in an effort to grab the bell. Kakashi jumps onto a river and goes "Water Style: Water Dragon Jutsu!" Kakashi supposedly washed away Raven's clones but Raven appears behind him and kicks him toward a tree. When Kakashi is about to recover, a hidden clone cracks him across the head with the hilt of its sword. Another clone grabs Kakashi in midair and piledrives him into the ground. Kakashi falls limp. Raven grabs the bell from his belt and deactivates his Raisengan.

Kakashi pulled his head out of the ground and congratulated Raven. "Well, you got the bell. Congratulations." Sakura and Naruto jumped down from the trees. "Raven, that was awesome! Not as cool as how I did it, but…OW!" Naruto hits the ground, unconscious. "Raven, how'd you do it? How did you hide your clones?" Sakura asked. "They're Shadow _Mist _Clones, right? They can turn into water but still retain their body shape, effectively rendering them invisible, even to kekkei genkai." Raven answered. Sakura thought to herself…_Smart, strong, and reasonably good-looking…wow. _Inner Sakura goes…**CHA! Why don't you date him? **Sakura replies…_because, I like Naruto even though I won't admit it. _"Now, who's up for ramen? My treat!" Naruto thinks…_He's treating us to ramen_! _He's cool already! _Sakura thinks…_Wow! He's nice treating us to ramen. _Kakashi thinks…_Hmm…an excellent Chunin. He'll make a fine Jonin someday. _And Naruto, Sakura, Raven and Kakashi head to Ichiraku Ramen Bar.


	3. Chapter 3

Rising

Chapter 3-An S-Rank Mission! Tracking Raven's Rival!

AUTHOR'S NOTE: This fic takes place during Naruto: Shippuden. If you don't know that, read chapters 1-2 NOW!

Raven was on his way to learn Chidori with Kakashi, but he had trouble focusing his Chakra. So, he decided to stop by Sakura's house and ask her for chakra control tips. He found her house and knocked on the door. "Yes, can I help you?" Sakura's mother asked. "Hi, is Sakura there?" Raven replied. "Yes, hold on. SAKURA!! There's someone here for you!" "Coming, Mom!" Sakura came down the stairs. "Oh, hi, Raven! What are you doing here?" "Hey, Sakura, do you have any tips on chakra control? I have trouble focusing it and I was going to see if I can do Chidori." Raven asked.

"I have an idea!" Sakura runs back upstairs and comes down with a balloon. "See if you can focus your chakra into the balloon without popping it." She hands Raven the balloon. "Alright." Raven starts focusing it inside the balloon and it doesn't pop. "You're doing great, Raven. Just keep it up. In fact, why don't you show Kakashi-sensei?" Sakura tells him, excited. "Sweet!" Raven starts running to show Kakashi the results of his work. Sakura starts thinking…_Maybe I can teach Raven the Medical Ninjutsu that Tsunade taught me. I wonder how he'll do with the Chidori? _Inner Sakura goes…**CHA!! Maybe you can turn the Ninjutsu practice into a date! **Sakura replies…_Shut up! You know I like Naruto! _Inner Sakura's response…**Well, who do you want? Naruto or Raven? **

Naruto suddenly runs up to Sakura. "Sakura!! We have an S-Rank mission! We gotta find Raven!" Suddenly, a massive blue explosion appears out of nowhere. "AARRRRGGHHHH!" Then Sakura realizes the scream. "RAVEN!! Come on, Naruto!!" Sakura grabs Naruto and starts running towards the explosion site.

_Meanwhile…_

Raven is holding his arm, having developed a more focused version of Chidori, known as White Lightning Blade. Kakashi comments on the jutsu's destructive power. "Incredible, Raven. That jutsu is devastating. But be careful when you're using it. Sakura and Naruto get there and find two exploded trees and a split rock. "What happened? We saw an explosion!" Naruto commented. "That was Raven demonstrating his new technique, White Lightning Blade." Kakashi told him. "Cool. Anyways, we got an S-Rank mission!" Raven's jaw dropped. "Come on!" Raven, Naruto, Sakura, and Kakashi head to the Hokage's office.

The foursome arrives at the Hokage's office. "Your S-Ranked mission is capture this target." Tsunade holds up a picture. Raven immediately recognizes the picture. "Why this ninja of all people?!?" Raven was incredulous. "You know this guy, Raven?" Sakura asked. "Yeah. He's my rival and an S-Class missing-nin from the Mist Village. Aoi Kenshin." Raven told them. "How do you know him?" Naruto asked him. Raven responded, "That's a story to be left for later, until you guys trust me more." Raven immediately disappears. "Well, that was weird." Sakura, Naruto, and Kakashi go after Raven.

Raven leaps from tree to tree, his mind racing. _Aoi of all people? Why? He still hates my guts from when we were liquid assassins. _Then Aoi appears right in front of him. "Raven, long time no see. Have you told them yet?" Aoi told him in a nonchalant tone. "SHUT UP!" Raven charges at him. Aoi simply throws him into a tree. "DAHHH!!!" Raven flies through the tree and into a rock. "Damn…you've gotten stronger since we last met." Raven uttered. "Hmph. This is the best you've got to offer? You suck. And to think you were the best liquid assassin in the business." "Raven, what does he mean by liquid assassin?" Sakura was curious. "Aw, crap. Aoi, you die now!!!" Raven rushed at him.

_Will Raven complete the mission? Or will Aoi whip them all? And will Sakura find out Raven's secret? Find out next chapter!_


	4. Chapter 3 Part 2

-1Rising

Chapter 3 Pt. 2-Rivals! Tragic Secret Revealed!

You should know this part by now.

"Aoi, you die now!" Raven rushed at him, but feinted a punch and slashed Aoi's arm with his sword. "I lost use of my sword arm…great." Aoi groaned. Suddenly he disappeared and reappeared behind Sakura with his kunai to her neck. "I'll kill the girl! Unless you surrender," Aoi told Raven evilly. "Dude, you sure picked the wrong girl to mess with." Raven chuckled. "You. Are. Screwed." "What do you mean by that?" Aoi soon learned the hard way. Sakura charged chakra in her hand and slapped him. Aoi was sent flying through a tree and crashed into the rock that Raven hit.

Aoi got up and appeared behind Raven with his sword, in his left hand, to his neck. "Go ahead! Slit my throat, I dare you, you slimy bastard." Raven declared. "With pleasure, Raven," and with that Aoi slit Raven's throat. Raven slumped and Aoi kicked him off the tree. "RAVEN!!" Sakura cried out. Then, Raven's body disappeared. Aoi and Sakura were equally shocked. "Where are you!? Show yourself, coward!" Aoi exclaimed. "Heh heh heh…Aoi, you were an idiot when it came to stances. And you still are." Raven appeared behind from what appeared to be a puddle. Before Aoi could react, Raven punched him in the face. "Now, Naruto!"

Naruto appeared from the forest with several clones. One punched Aoi while three came behind him and kicked him up in the air. "Na! Ru! To!" And the real Naruto met Aoi's face with an axe kick. "Uzumaki Barrage!" Aoi slammed into the ground, hard. "I refuse to lose, here and now! Secret Jutsu: Shadow Clone Slash Jutsu!" Aoi cloned himself and a thick fog appeared around Raven. "W-What is this?!?" All of a sudden, several high-speed slashes came at Raven. When the mist dissipated, someone had fallen, but it wasn't Raven. "Naruto…you took the slashes for me…why?" Raven asked, shocked. "Cuz…you're my friend…and my comrade…and I won't let my comrades die! That's my nindo." Raven was taken aback. So shocked that he started shedding tears. He took Naruto to Sakura. "Sakura…can you heal him?" "Yeah…I can." Sakura took on healing Naruto. Raven turned to face Aoi. "You bastard…you killed my friend! You took his dream away! I'll kill you!! GRRRRRR…"

A strange orange chakra surrounded Raven. His eyes automatically activated the Raisengan. His nails sharpened into claws. And flaming wings of chakra appeared from his shoulder blades. And three, blood-red lines appeared on his face. Sakura, Naruto, and Kakashi were shocked to see this side of Raven. Sakura's thoughts…_Oh my god. He has a demon just like Naruto. _Naruto's thoughts…_Holy crap. He has that same bloodthirsty look as Gaara during my fight with him. _Kakashi's thoughts…_It's a chakra more sinister than the Nine-Tailed Fox._ Aoi looked at Raven. "You still haven't told them yet? Pitiful." "RRRRRRAAAAAHHH!!!" Raven kicks Aoi high up into the air. He flies up after him and slashes him three times. His handwraps tie around Aoi and immobilize him. Then he starts spinning. But then he ignites the bandages with Fire Style: Dragon Flame Jutsu and slams Aoi into the ground. "Phoenix Lotus!!" Raven slides back and charges at Aoi. Aoi slashes at him with his sword but it snaps in half. Raven uses the Body Flicker to appear behind Aoi and breaks both his arms.

"This ain't over Raven!! I'll get you later!!" Aoi jumps away to heal his wounds. Raven goes back to normal and passes out. Kakashi walks over to Raven, picks up his body, and heads back to the Leaf Village. Naruto woke up in time to head back to the village. Sakura follows, confused about Raven…_What happened? It was like a whole different personality! _Inner Sakura time…**CHA!! I don't trust him! So, who did you decide? Naruto or Raven? **Sakura thinks to herself…_I don't know…I like Naruto, but Raven is charming, but I'm suspicious. What happened to him back there? _

_Back at the village…_

Tsunade heals Naruto and Raven. "What happened to them?" Tsunade asked. "Naruto took some slashes for Raven, and Raven…changed. He nearly murdered Aoi and then passed out," Sakura replied. "Hmm…I don't like that one bit. Keep an eye on Raven. That power could destroy the village." Inner Sakura responds…**CHA!! Now you can date Raven to keep an eye on him. **Sakura responded…_No! I'm not going to ask Raven! Not yet, anyway. _Inner Sakura…**Is that a maybe, Sakura? **_I guess._ **CHA!! **"Sakura…Sakura, hello?" Tsunade snapped. "What, oh, sorry, keep an eye on Raven, got it." Sakura runs off.

Raven wakes up and his headset rings. "What is it, Santo?" "Raven, you got a call. Something about a Jonin stealing money from the village and the daimyo is covering it up," Santo replied. "I'm on it. Can you drop my gear off at the edge of the forest?" "I'm on it, thanks Santo," Raven replied. Raven jetted off toward the forest. Sakura noticed Raven heading toward the forest and followed him. She caught up with him before he reached the forest. "Raven, what happened during the fight with Aoi?" "Sakura, you don't want to know." She grabbed his arm. "Yes, I do, Raven. I care about you." Raven sighed. "Alright, Sakura. That chakra surrounding me…that was the phoenix in my body coming out." Sakura was confused. "Phoenix?" "Yeah. 15 years ago a phoenix threatened the five great nations. It cut a swath of destruction through until my family offered me up as a vessel for it. In return, I gained access to its chakra as well as increased strength, speed, and reflexes. I didn't have many friends as a kid. Aoi was my friend…until…screw it, you don't need to know." Sakura was shocked. "Raven, I had no idea…" "Yeah, you didn't," Raven responded coldly. With that he knocked Sakura out and left to continue his contract. The last thing Sakura saw before she passed was Raven jumping away.


	5. AUTHOR'S NOTE

-1Rising

AUTHOR'S NOTE

This is an author's note, meant to clear up any problems or confusion with the fic. Feel free to ask questions, and I will answer the most frequently asked ones in an author's note. DO NOT ask who Sakura will pick! You'll find out in later chapters.

With Chapter 4, It should've been Chapter 3 Part 2, but I forgot to make that change. Sorry for any confusion that might've caused.

Also in Chapter 3 Part 2, there is some bad punctuation errors. If it's hard to follow, sorry. I was tired while writing it.

Anyways, Chapter 4 (5) will come within 10 days.

Thanks for your patience,

Phoenix MetaBlade


	6. Chapter 4

-1Rising

Chapter 4 (or is it 5?)-Darkblade's Identity Revealed!

Raven grabs his assassin's gear inside the cover of the trees and changes into Darkblade. Darkblade rings Santo on his headset. "Yo, Santo, where's the corrupt Jonin?" "The Jonin is 200 yards to your northwest. Watch out, he's good with ranged weapons." Darkblade adjusts his direction towards the ninja. "Thanks Santo. Later." Darkblade was about 50 yards from the target when he trips an exploding tag wiretrap.

"Sakura. Sakura, wake up!" Sakura opens her eyes. She is staring up at Naruto, who has a worried look on his face, which morphed to one of relief. "Thank god you're awake. I thought you were dead for a second. What happened?" Sakura was feeling as if she had been drugged. "Unnngh…Raven…knocked me out…then he left the village." Naruto immediately went crazy. "What the-let me at him? That sneaky bastard-he'll pay for what he did!" Sakura had enough sense going to stop Naruto. "Naruto, chill! I'll make sure he pays…CHA!!"

Darkblade, meanwhile is surrounded by a deafening amount of explosions. "Whoa! Dah! Grr! Arrgh!" Darkblade is straining to avoid the traps when he runs into one head-on. "Oh…crap." Darkblade disappeared in the explosion…or so the Jonin thinks. _Good, I lost my tracker. Nobody except the daimyo knows of the money thefts. _He lands, then takes a step forward. "What the?!?" He stepped in a puddle. "Gotcha." The puddle sends a shock through the Jonin, sending him into cardiac arrest and killing him. A humanoid form rises from the puddle. Now, it looks like an average person, except for the solid yellow eyes and the fact that you can see through it, due to it being composed of crystal-clear water. "No more missing money." The liquid person turns solid, revealing Darkblade. "Mission accomplished, Santo." "Good work, Darkblade. Head home. You've earned it." Darkblade heads off toward the Leaf Village.

Lee is participating in a handstand race against Guy, when he sees a blur at the edge of the forest. It turned out to be Darkblade! Darkblade took off his hood and shades…and it was Raven! "Raven, what are you doing?" "Oh, uh, nothing, nothing at all." Lee didn't take no for an answer. "Raven, are you Darkblade?" Raven sighed. "Yeah, I'm Darkblade, but you can't tell anyone! I'll do anything!" Lee thinks about this for a while. "I got it…how did you get Sakura?" "Dude, it takes skill and luck to get Sakura. Maybe if you shave your eyebrows and change your hairstyle…" "Say no more!" Lee runs off to do what Raven said.

Meanwhile, Kiba is taking Akamaru for a walk when he runs into Raven. "Sorry. Wait, aren't you Raven?" "Yeah, and you're Kiba." Kiba looked excited to find Raven. "Hey! I hear you're great at stealth and stuff." Raven was surprised that he knew that. "OK, what do you need?" Kiba told him, "I know my sister _likes _someone, but I can't figure out who it is." Raven cut him off. "You want me to find out who it is. I can do that. I pull it on my older sister all the time." Kiba nodded. "Follow me." Raven, Kiba, and Akamaru walked toward the Inuzuka residence. Kiba pointed out where his sister's room was. "That's where you'll find her diary." Raven grinned evilly. "That's evil. NICE!!" Kiba ducked underneath the hedge while Raven turned into liquid and snuck in.

_Alright…I'm in. Now to find-aw damn! _One of the Hanimaru Sankyodai walked by Raven. He sniffed him a few times, then walked away. _Phew. That was close. _Raven starts sneaking toward her room. He met no interruptions. _Nice. The diary is open. Huh…she must have been writing in it. _Raven carefully searched the pages until he found a little heart drawing which read _H.I.+S. _Raven thought pretty hard. _Sasuke? No. Who has an S? Wait a second-Sai? It is Sai! BWAHAHAHAHAHA!!! Are you serious?!? Man, wait 'til Kiba hears this. _Raven sneaks back outside very quickly and whispers it to Kiba. They both end up rolling the grass, laughing. Hana hears this and runs outside. Kiba looks up and goes, "Uh, Raven? Time to stop laughing." Raven looks up and goes, "That's the best idea I've heard all day." Hana runs after Kiba while the Hanimaru Sankyodai went after Raven. "AAAAAAAHHHH!!!" Raven ran for his life.

_2 hours later…_

Raven finally stops to catch his breath when an angered-looking Sakura comes up to him. "Hi, Sakura." Sakura doesn't say anything. She slaps him in the face instead. Raven ended up in a faceplant. "Oww…Sakura, I know you're pissed off at me, but can I ask you something?" Sakura turns to him with an indifferent look. "Make it quick," and she said with such venom it sent chills down Raven's spine. "Um…Sakura, would you…like to…go to Ichiraku Ramen…with me…tonight?" Sakura was openly shocked by the question, but she regained her composure and replied, "Are you asking me out?" Raven sheepishly smiled and told her, "Badly, yes." Sakura thought about it and said, "You're lucky you're cute, otherwise I wouldn't even consider it." Raven took a jab and replied, "How many of those offers have you accepted?" Sakura really, _really_, wanted to break all of Raven's bones at that point. Instead, she considered his offer. She looked at Naruto, who was going "No way! He knocked you out, remember?!?" She glanced at Raven and said, "How does 7:30 sound?" Naruto's jaw dropped. Raven replied, "Perfect! Meet you there?" Sakura told him, "Sure. See you tonight!" Raven couldn't have been happier. "Bye! See you tonight!" Raven ran off going "YAHOO!!!"

Raven walks inside his house. "Mom, Dad, I'm home!" His sister Sierra said, "Alright, what happened Raven? You haven't had this big a smile since you got promoted." Sierra Ashcrest was 17, about two and a half inches taller than Raven, with blond hair tied back in a ponytail. She wore a leather jacket with the Ashcrest symbol on the back. She had white elbow bracers. She also wore blue pants with a shuriken holster on her right thigh and blue sandals. Sierra asked him again, "What happened, Raven?" Just then his headset rang. Raven thought…_Phew! Saved by the bell._ Raven ran upstairs to his room to take Santo's call. Raven tapped it and said "Hey, Santo, what's up?" Santo sounded urgent. "Raven, I have an urgent contract for you! Now!" Raven became defiant. "No way, Santo. I finally got a girl to go out with me, and she knows about the phoenix!" Santo refused. "Raven, you gotta do it! You're the only assassin left!" This shocked Raven. "Wh-What do you mean? What the-never mind, Santo. Screw the mission! I got a date!" With that response, Raven leaves his room and his house to meet Sakura. Sakura was waiting for him when he got there. "Hey, Sakura!" Sakura saw him and waved. Raven took his seat by her. "Sakura, anything you want is on me. Hey Teuchi! Can you whip up the house special?" Teuchi nodded. "House special, on the double!." Sakura looked at him and asked for the diet ramen. "Coming right up, miss." While they were waiting, Raven asked Sakura a question. "Sakura, did I interrupt something between you and Naruto?" Sakura blushed at the question and said, "No! You didn't interrupt at all." Raven noticed she was blushing and said, "Are you cold, Sakura?" She nodded. Raven took off his vest, gave it to her, and focused his chakra to make sleeves. She thanked him for his "jacket" and began eating her ramen. It had arrived while they were speaking. Raven started digging into his ramen. When they were finished, Raven offered to walk Sakura home. She wasn't used to the kindness that he was offering, so she said yes. When they got to her house, they stopped. "Thanks for dinner, Raven. It was…good." Raven grinned. "No problem! I'm glad you enjoyed it." He noticed that Sakura was twiddling her keys around. She started getting closer to him and closed her eyes. He leaned in until his lips touched hers. Hers tasted like strawberries, and she noticed his tasted like mint. She thought to herself…_breath spray._ It lasted for about 10 seconds, then they parted. Sakura was first to break the ice. "Well, goodnight, Raven." Raven nodded. "Same to you, Sakura," And with that he walked away.


	7. Chapter 5

-1Rising

Chapter 5/6-Mysterious Murders! Target: Raven

It was the day after Raven's date with Sakura. He woke up, got dressed, and went downstairs for breakfast. He found Sierra waiting at the table. "How'd it go, Raven?" Raven responded, "Why do you want to know, Sierra?" Sierra smiled sweetly. Raven had a sick feeling in his stomach. Just then, his mom walked into the table to put cereal on the table for everybody. "Good morning, Raven!" Mirena Ashcrest was 35, with a tough but caring personality. Everybody sat down for breakfast. Just then, Lee burst through the door. Raven stood up, shocked. "Lee! What the hell happened?!?" Lee whispered something in Raven's ear.

"The Leaf kunoichi got kidnapped?!?" Lee shrugged. "Let's go!" Raven and Lee jumped through the window and jumped toward the scene. On the way, Raven's headset rang. "Lee, go ahead. I'll catch up." Lee went ahead. "What's up, Santo?" "The Leaf kunoichi got kidnapped!" Raven sighed. "I know that. What else is new?" "Yeah, all the other liquid assassins have been neutralized the same way: suffocated." Raven's jaw dropped. "Wait…Santo, run an autopsy." "There's blood in the lungs-" "Plasma powder. Aoi's signature assassination weapon from the Mist Village. Can be slipped into any liquid. Once ingested, it heads straight for the lungs and fills them up with blood. It keeps filling up until they suffocate to death. Oh…shit! That's a warning…I got to go!"

Meanwhile, Naruto was listening to the entire conversation, disguised as a wall. His thoughts…_Whoa! Raven's an assassin! Oh, Sakura's going to love this." _Suddenly, Raven felt a near-invisible vibration. "Come out, Naruto! I know you're here." Naruto flinched. _What?!? How'd he know I was here?!? _Raven appeared in front of Naruto. He growled at him, "Run." Naruto started running toward scene of the crime with Raven chasing after him.

Raven was still chasing Naruto when he caught a black blur-and a glimpse of pink hair. "Sakura! Hang on!" Raven jumped after her. They went toward the forest. Naruto was thankful that Raven stopped chasing him.

Raven was tracking the ninja that grabbed Sakura. He uttered her name. She recognized him from his blue hair. "Raven…LOOK OUT!" Sure enough, two other ninja tried to knock him out from behind. He ducked and kicked the first one in the stomach. He went crashing to the ground. The second one tried to smash him in the face. Raven did a Matrix-style dodge, and backflip-kicked him. He went flying upward and then Raven jabbed him in the face. He knocked out the guy carrying Sakura. She jumped up and started back toward the Leaf Village when a fourth guy darts out of the tree and grabs her. Raven tripped the guy up and was about to catch Sakura when a fifth guy darts out and knocks him out. Raven's world went black and white, then all black. He hit a tree branch, got stuck, then hit another tree. He hit one more tree, and landed on a rock. His body snapped, then rolled onto the ground. Sakura yelled his name. He didn't hear.

Sakura found herself shackled to the wall of a cave, along with Hinata, Ino, and Tenten. "Arrgh…what happened?" Tenten responded, "We got knocked out and kidnapped. Now we're chained in this cave." Sakura was wondering something. "Who'd kidnap us? And why?" Then a mysterious figure stepped out of the darkness. "I kidnapped here to lure the Konoha 11 here for…revenge!" Sakura recognized the voice. "You…we kicked your ass once and we'll do it again!"

Naruto and Lee knew Raven had gone after Sakura, but he hadn't come back. So they decided to chase after him. They asked Kiba if he and Akamaru could help track Raven. Kiba agreed, and the threesome searched the forest for Raven. Unknown to them, Sierra was following behind.

Raven found himself in the hospital, with Tsunade healing his injuries. Not only had he broken an arm and leg, he also tore one of his leg muscles and damaged his spinal cord. "Arrgh…forest…chase…Round 2..." Suddenly he bolted up. "Sakura got kidnapped! I got to go!" Tsunade knocked him back down. "No way, Raven. You need to heal. It's going to take at least two days, including the phoenix chakra." Raven grimaced. "Two days _at least_?!?"

_Who kidnapped the kunoichi? Are they going to break free? Can Raven heal in time? Find out next chapter! _


	8. Chapter 5 Part 2

-1Rising

Chapter 5 Part 2-Kunoichi Breakout! Shinobi Deadlock!

**DISCLAIMER: **I own Raven Ashcrest. I do not own Naruto, or any of the characters.

A mysterious figure walked out of the darkness. Sakura recognized him immediately. "Aoi! You…why do want us?" Aoi levitated up to Sakura's level. "I want…information." Aoi sneered. "What kind of information?!" Ino yelled. Aoi glided over to Ino. "What kind of info…hmmm…oh, yes, information on certain…legends." Sakura struggled against her chains. "What…legends?", she growled. Aoi grinned. "Legends…of the nine winds, demons, if you will." All the kunoichi were confused on the statement. Ino was first to break the ice. "Why do you wanna know!?" Aoi merely shook his head, then unshackled them. They fell to the ground and were knocked out, as well as broke some bones. Four other figures picked them up and took them to what seemed like jail cells.

Meanwhile, Raven was still trying to sneak out of the hospital. He managed about 30 feet before Tsunade noticed he was missing. "RAVEN! You know you're not supposed to be up and running yet! Your leg is still screwed up!" Raven yelled without even looking, "Shut the hell up! I know what happened! Now let me do what I need to do!" With that, he ran off to find Naruto, Kiba, or somebody who could help him.

About an hour later, he finally ran into Naruto. Raven was panting, his leg having caused him large amounts of pain. "Naruto! Thank god I found you! I need your help." Naruto looked at him and noticed his leg was swollen. "Is it something to do with the kunoichi?" Raven nodded. "Yeah, I think I know where they are. Problem is, I haven't been discharged." Naruto thought about this and came up with something. "Raven! Transform into one of the Shinobi and-" Raven interrupted him mid-sentence. "Make a clone to fool Tsunade. Naruto, you're a genius! Come on! We need as much help as we can get." So Naruto set of to gather the remaining teammates while Raven put his plan into action.

Sakura woke up to find herself in her undergarments and beaten, as well as in a jail cell. "Holy crap…what happened?" Then she had a flashback. Aoi was trying to interrogate her, and she refused to comply. So he beat her, but she still didn't give. Aoi then decide to break their morale by putting them in jail cells. She had an idea. _Even though this is concrete, maybe I can break through it with my strength. _Sakura started charging chakra, until her hand was surrounded by it. Then she slammed her fist in to the wall. The outer layer crumbled, but it revealed an inner layer of steel. _What?!? No matter. This will break…I know it will!! _With that, she resumed her strategy. Tenten was trying to cut her way out, Hinata was using bursts of chakra on her cell, and Ino was rapidly punching and kicking it. Yet nothing seemed to work. After 2 hours, Aoi visited Sakura in her cell. "Well well, trying to free yourself, eh, Sakura?" She didn't say anything, she only glared at him. "Ooh, the silent treatment, I'm so scared. BWAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" Aoi laughed evilly. "You've been beaten and beaten, and you refuse to give up any information. Fine. I'll go harder on you then anything I've tried so far!" He opened the cell, walked in, closed it, and starting slashing her with his sword. She guarded and didn't give up in spite of the pain. He stopped for a minute. "You know, if you told me what I wanted, I'd stop and let you go." Sakura flatly refused. "I never give up, and I won't tell you anything!" Aoi sighed. "Very well." He grabbed her by the throat and rammed her into the wall. "No response?" He slammed her into the wall again. Then, he kissed her. She looked like she was going to puke. Then, she slapped him in the face. "What the hell was that?!?" Aoi grinned. "You know, Raven hasn't told you much about himself, has he?" Sakura grimaced. "What are you getting at?" He responded, "I know more about Raven than you do by a long shot. Like the fact that he…" Sakura's eyes widened. "…is an assassin, a bounty hunter of sorts." Sakura's jaw dropped.

Meanwhile, Raven, Naruto, Kiba and Akamaru, Shino, Neji, Lee, Shikamaru, and Choji were standing at the edge of the forest. Raven told the squad what they were about to face. "Guys, this is one of the toughest missions you will go on. We are dealing with an S-Class missing-nin. He's also an expert assassin. But he's kidnapped the Leaf kunoichi, and are we going to take that?!?" There was a resounding "No!!!" from the squad. Raven continued. "Are we going to let some psycho just waltz in and kidnap people?!?" "NO!!!" "Are you ready?!?" "YEAH!!" "Then…who's gonna bring the blood and pain?!?" "WE ARE!!" "What are we waiting for! Go, go, go!!" With that thundering speech in their minds, the eight Shinobi head off toward their target area.

Sakura was reeling from the shock, when she noticed walls going up in the main part of the cave. "Aoi, you sicko, what do you have planned?!?" Aoi told her, "I'm going to have a rematch with Raven. I owe that bastard some payback for what he did to me! I hate him!" He regained his level tone. "Raven and I are going to fight in that arena, and everyone-including you-will see how much of a ninja he really is!"

After several leaps and jumps, the shinobi reached the cave. Lee looked up the massive door, which was locked. "How do we get inside?" Raven had an idea. "I'll scout ahead and see if there's a way in through the back. Meanwhile, you guys see if you can find a way in on this side." Raven set off to do his part of the job. He snuck around back, turned into liquid, and by chance, he found Sakura's cell. She was sleeping. Raven thought, _Wow. She looks like an angel. Does that mean I died and went to heaven? _"Psst! Sakura!" She woke up. "Huh-who's there?" "It's me, Raven!" Sakura lit up at the fact that Raven had made it. "Raven! Where are you?" He responded, "I'm invisible. I'm here to break you out. The other shinobi are at the front, trying to find a way in." She sighed. "Good luck. Unless you can make us invisible, there's no way out. And Aoi has the only key." Raven activated the Raisengan almost instinctively, looking for a way out. "What the-I thought he ran away!" "Well, he's the one who kidnapped us." Raven almost snapped into the phoenix. "Sakura…he'll pay for what he's done!" Raven crept out of the jail cell and went to smash open the front door. He took at a hammer and starting smashing the lock mechanism. Sure enough, it broke, allowing everyone else to get in. "Raven, what a surprise."

He turned around to find Aoi staring at him. "What do you want?" "Payback." He looked the now-finished arena. "So, that's where you want your fight, eh?" Aoi looked at the arena, then fixed his gaze on Raven. "It's gonna be a fight to the death. If I win, the kunoichi stay with me. If you win, they're free to go." Raven thought about this for a while. Everyone was waiting. He came to a verdict. He grinned, looked Aoi in the eye, and said with a disturbing chill to his voice, "No…holds…barred. It's a deal. Get ready, Aoi…'cause you're fighting the Firebird!" Aoi simply sneered. "Oh, this is gonna be sweet. And you're in over your head…you're fighting the Dragon!!" Raven was taken aback. "What?!? The dragon was killed seven years ago! How-no matter. It's on!!"

So there they were, the former friends-turned-bitter enemies. A split-screen appears, with Raven on the right side with a phoenix emblem and red chakra surrounding the frame, while Aoi was on the left with a dragon emblem and purple chakra surrounding the frame.

_Next time: Phoenix vs. Dragon! A clash for the ages-who will come out on top? _


	9. AUTHOR'S NOTE 2

-1Rising

AUTHOR'S NOTE

From Chapter 5 Part 3 on, I will put in a theme song for major events, such as Raven's second fight with Aoi, and I want the readers (you) to choose the songs! So, if you review my story, you can submit an idea for a theme song. I will choose a lucky few to be in the fic. Current roster for the fight is:

Headstrong-Trapt

Baby Come Back-By Rock Lee (in an Elvis impersonation, following tips from a previous chapter…)

Animal I've Become-Three Days Grace

If you have any other ideas, put them in a review. Anyways, Chapter 5 Part 3 will be coming within a week. Sorry for the fake chapter.

Thanks for your patience,

Phoenix MetaBlade


	10. Chapter 5 Part 3

-1Rising

Chapter 5 Pt. 3-Demonic Blood, Destroyed Soul

DISCLAIMER: I own Raven Ashcrest. I don't own Naruto, or any of the characters.

Aoi Kenshin walked into his arena. He threw his jacket off, revealing a muscular frame, under a shirt and shorts. "Well, Raven, I'm waiting!" Raven rolled his eyes, then walked in the other side. He threw off his vest, revealing his T-shirt and pants. All eyes were on the two combatants. Aoi snapped his fingers. All of a sudden, what seemed like 200 ninjas surrounded Naruto, Neji, Kiba, and everyone except Lee (he was missing for some reason…).

"Your comrades can't help you in this fight, Raven!" He simply glared at Aoi. "Whatever." Raven activated his Raisengan. Aoi unsheathed his sword, apparently fixed after it was snapped during the forest fight. Raven did the same, then "_Eye of the Tiger_" started playing. Raven looked up to the sky, then back at Aoi. "Fire Style: Phoenix Flower Jutsu!" Raven jumped into the air, then spat out about 14 fireballs. "You aren't gonna get me with that basic jutsu!" Aoi whipped up a gust of wind to blow out the fireballs.

"What?!? There's shuriken?!?" Sure enough, 14 shuriken came flying at him. "Shuriken Shadow Clone Jutsu!" Raven made copies of the shuriken until there were 100 zooming at Aoi. "AAARRGH!" Aoi cried out, then disappeared. _A shadow clone…! _Aoi appeared behind him, about to slice his head off. Raven ducked and kicked him in the air. He used the Crimson Leaf Body Flicker to appear behind Aoi, and wrapped him up. Then he slammed him into the ground. "Primary Lotus!" Aoi then smells burning leaves. "Oh, hell…" KABOOM! The two leaves explode, having exploding tags on the undersides. Aoi disappears again. Then he reappears in the air, grinning evilly.

"I think it's time you met the Dragon!" Two flaming wings of chakra erupt from his shoulder blades, turning purple. His nails sharpened into claws, with a purple aura surrounding them. Purple flames ran up his arms, and his skin changed to resemble dragon's scales. Right after that, the song switched to "_Headstrong_". "Heh heh heh…the Dragon won't stop me!" Raven jumped into the air after two red, flaming chakra wings appeared out of his shoulders. Three, blood-red lines appeared on his face. His nails sharpened into claws, and an orange aura surrounded his hands. "Come on!" Raven rushed at Aoi with his right hand back, ready to slash at him. Aoi looped over him and followed up with an axe kick. Raven smacked into the ground, hard. Raven got back up, and Aoi slashed him in the face. He went flying backwards, then Aoi appeared behind him and spin kicked him into the cave wall. Raven slammed into the wall, then peeled off like flypaper. "Owww…" Raven got up, and flew at Aoi again. Then he feinted a punch, and made hand signs. "Wind Style: Great Breakthrough Jutsu!" Aoi was sent sprawling toward the cave wall. Raven dashed at him, leaving afterimages. He got right in Aoi's face and told him, "Dude, Sakura's mine. You go near her again, you'll be dead faster than I can kill the average S-Class shinobi. And that's fast." He pulled his fist back, poised to strike. Aoi took advantage and smacked Raven down to the floor with a hard jab. Aoi formulated the hand signs for what was thought to be a Secret Jutsu. "Amaterasu!" Raven looked up. "How…AAAAAAAAAHHHHHH!!!" A black flame consumed Raven. Sakura couldn't believe her eyes. "RAVEN!!! NO!!!"

All Raven could see was darkness. "Unghh…so this is how I die. Burned by the legendary Uchiha flame. Arrgh…" Then he heard a scream. "RAVEN!!! NO!!!" Then his expression changed. "Wait…I can't die… not when the girl I love…and my friends…are depending on me. Thanks, Sakura…you made me realize…I refuse…to die! Here…and…now!! RRRRAAAAHHHHH!!!"

Aoi was laughing his head off. "Ha! I've done it! I've beaten Raven Ashcrest! That makes me the best there is! Yeah!!" Then the cavern started shaking. "What the-" "RRRRAAAAHHHHH!!!" Someone walked out of the black flame, smoke trailing behind him. Then the song changed to "_Animal I've Become_". The figure had jet-black wings, jet-black flames running up his arms, jet-black lines on his face, and jet-black eyes. He pointed at Aoi. "You…DIE! RRRAAAHHH!!" The figure flew at Aoi insanely fast. He got in Aoi's face and piledrived him to the ground.Black, as we will call the figure, followed him to the ground and started slashing him. "How does it feel?" Black had cut Aoi open, so he ripped out his heart. Aoi gasped. "Aw, crap." Black was laughing, only it was a darker laugh.

"BWAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!" Aoi drew one final breath, then he laid still. Black fell to his knees, then onto the ground. The wings, lines, claws, and black eyes faded away, revealing a blue shirt, bandages, and green eyes. The minions disappeared, leaving Naruto, Neji, Kiba, and the other shinobi. The shackles binding the kunoichi vanished, freeing them. Sakura rushed over to Raven's body. Ino ran to Choji, Tenten ran to Neji, and Hinata ran to Kiba. The kunoichi were being comforted by the shinobi, yet Sakura wasn't feeling it. She couldn't believe. Raven…dead? She felt for a pulse. None. Tears began to well up in her eyes. "No…Raven…please, don't go…" "You don't have to ask. I'm staying here where I belong." Raven opened his eyes and grinned at her. She wrapped her arms around him, being able to feel warmth from a friend for the first time in what seemed like an eternity. He felt tears running down his shoulder. He returned the hug, then fell over on his side. "Aw, jeez, my muscles are screwy. I'm gonna get shot for pulling that stunt." He got to his feet (with problems), then looked at Aoi's body. "Holy shit, what happened!?!" Sakura whispered in his ear. He looked remorseful, then he grinned. "Boy, that dude sure got hell. Let's head back to the Leaf Village." Sakura put her hands on her hips. "Uh, Raven, hello?!? Almost no clothing, remember?" "Ohhhh…Secret Jutsu: Invisiblity Jutsu!" Sakura, Ino, Tenten, and Hinata seemed to vanish. Naruto yelled, "Raven! Where'd they go!" "They're invisible. They had almost no clothing, remember?" "Oh, yeah…right. Let's go!" So the Konoha 11 (No Lee) and Raven head back toward the Leaf Village, Aoi finally dead.

_Next time: All seems well in the Leaf Village. But that's about to change…_


	11. Chapter 6

-1Rising

Chapter 6-Akatsuki On The Move!

DISCLAIMER: I own Raven Ashcrest. I do not own Naruto, or any of the characters (that would be sweet, though.)

Raven, Naruto and the rest of the gang arrive back in the Leaf Village after the fight with Aoi Kenshin and his minions. "Alright, girls, you can reappear now." "Phew! Thank god!" Sakura, Ino, Tenten and Hinata appear out of thin air. Just then, Lee pops up out of nowhere wearing white clothing, thinner eyebrows, and a stylish pompadour. Raven was thinking…_Huh. He looks like Elvis Pres…ley. Oh hell…He actually did it!?! I was just messing around! _Lee starts singing "_Baby Come Back" _by Player, directed at Sakura. Raven has a look on his face like "_What the hell is up with this village?" _Sakura's jaw dropped. Naruto was laughing his head off. Neji shook his head like "_My god, Lee, you're desperate." _Tenten giggled. Shikamaru sighed. Choji ignored him. Hinata was staring at Naruto. Ino was looking at the sky. Kiba was going to walk Akamaru. Shino ran off to collect insects. Lee got down on his knees, looked at Sakura, and said, "Do you love me now, Sakura?" Sakura shook her head. Lee became depressed.

During Lee's 15 minutes of fame (or shame), Akatsuki was making plans to nab the Kyubi. "Itachi, do you understand? You are to draw away the Phoenix jinchuriki while Kisame goes in, grabs Naruto, and brings him back here. If anything goes wrong, Zetsu will back you up. Correct?" Itachi nodded. "Yes, leader, I understand. Right away." Itachi jumps away, followed by Kisame. Zetsu was already ahead of them, scouting.

Raven was still staring when his headset rang. He looked around, then vanished. "Santo, what the hell?! You almost got me found out!" "Oh, _sorry. _But Akatsuki is on the move!" Raven winced. "Damn. They're looking for Naruto-and they want me gone. And where there's Itachi…" "There's Sasuke." Raven rubbed his temples. "I need to warn Naruto…but I'm in no condition to fight! My only chance is for the _hunted _to become the _hunter." _Raven jetted off to find Naruto and warn him of the coming storm.

Naruto was walking along looking for Sakura when he runs into Raven-_literally._ Both of them hit the ground. "Oof! Agh!" Naruto rubs his head. "Raven! Watch where you're going!" Raven walked over and whispered in his ear, "Naruto, Itachi and Kisame are coming to kidnap you! And Sasuke's following them!" Naruto's eyes widened. "Sasuke…" He flashbacks to a scene when Kakashi gave them both a noogie. His expression saddened, then it changed to one of determination. "Raven, come on. You and me are going to stop Akatsuki and bring Sasuke back." Raven nodded. "Yeah! I have a vendetta with them…" Raven had a flashback to a scene in the Mist Village when he was 8. _Chaos was abound. Several houses were on fire, and there were dead bodies all over. Raven was a liquid assassin, fighting alongside the other liquid assassins to stop the Leaf forces._ _"Raven! Get out of here! The Konoha Anbu are coming! AAAAGH!!" Itachi had appeared behind a group and slaughtered them. Then, he dashed towards the liquid assassin line. "RUN!!!" "NO!!" Raven was forced to flee as Itachi and the rest of the Anbu destroyed his home._

_Itachi…you'll pay for what you did! _Raven activated his Raisengan and followed Naruto to intercept the Akatsuki. Then, "_The Bourne Ultimatum" _theme song started playing.

Sasuke Uchiha was silently following Kisame and his brother, Itachi. _Look out, Itachi…I'm coming for you! _He tracked them all the way to Konoha. _They're looking for Naruto…and Naruto's probably looking for them. Heh heh. This could work to my advantage. _As if on cue, Naruto leaped out of the forest and tackled Itachi. Raven unsheathed his sword and sliced at Kisame. Sasuke looked surprised. _Who the hell is this? Wait a minute…that's Raven Ashcrest! Oh crap…_Sasuke created his Chidori blade and waited for the right time. Itachi threw Naruto off of him and into a tree. Raven missed his slash and recovered with a hard kick to Kisame's stomach. Kisame blocked it and slashed at him. Raven dodged it, but his arm got sliced in the process. The Naruto that crashed into a tree was a shadow clone. Suddenly, several clones leapt at Itachi. Itachi repelled most of them, but one clone kicked him up in the air. Kisame slashed at Raven again. Raven grabbed the end of Kisame's sword, whirled around, and threw him into Itachi. Naruto then bounced off three clones and punched Itachi, sending him downward. Sasuke saw his chance, knocked Raven out of his way, jumped up and impaled Itachi and Kisame before they hit the ground.

Itachi turned out to be a clone, while Kisame pulled a Substitution Jutsu and vanished. There was a three-way deadlock between Naruto, Sasuke, and Raven. Naruto looked at Sasuke with resentment in his eyes, while Sasuke glared back. Raven could only watch as the standoff went on. "Sasuke…" Naruto uttered. "Naruto…damn you." Sasuke swore under his breath. "Wind Style: Rasengan!" Naruto starts forming the Rasengan in his hand. "Chidori Current!" Electricity started crackling around Sasuke and his chokuto. Naruto and Sasuke rush at each other with their respective attacks. Just as they are about to trade blows, Raven charges into the fray with White Lightning Blade. The sheer power of all three Jutsu creates a dome of blinding white light. All three are momentarily blinded by the light. Raven is first to recover and overpowers both Naruto and Sasuke, causing an explosion. Naruto and Sasuke are sent flying in opposite directions, while Raven is thrown backward by the recoil from his Jutsu and the explosion, crashing into a set of fallen trees. Sasuke got up and met with Team Snake to track Itachi again.

_2 hours later…_

Naruto wakes up to find himself in the hospital healing from his burns from the showdown. "Raven…that's how powerful White Lightning Blade is?" Raven was in the room next to Naruto. His right arm was severely burned, and he had bruises on his back. There was a small hole in the wall between the rooms. "Yeah." "Whoa! I gotta train more so the Rasengan can equal that!" "I think your Spiraling Shuriken does that." "Still!" Raven rolled his eyes.

"Itachi! You failed to capture Naruto! You too, Kisame!" Itachi had his general indifferent look on his face. Kisame looked disappointed. "We ran into…interference by the Firebird brat and my foolish little brother." Pein sighed. "Very well. You are dismissed."

_Next time: Tsunade's suspicions of Raven are confirmed. What are they and how will it affect Team 7? Find out next chapter!_


	12. Chapter 7

-1Rising

Chapter 7-Tsunade's Suspicions Confirmed!

Tsunade was pacing the confines of her office. _Hmm…Raven is becoming too much of a liability. If the true phoenix dominates him, Raven will die and so will the village. Should I take a preemptive strike? Yes…I have no choice. _Shizune walks in, carrying Tonton as usual. "Lady Tsunade…what's wrong?" Tsunade sat at her desk and sighed. "Shizune, Raven is coming too close to releasing the true phoenix. I'm going to carry out an Anbu strike." Shizune looked grim. "Lady Tsunade…are you sure?" Tsunade nodded and called for an Anbu squad leader. He appeared instantly. "Lord Hokage…what is your request?" "I want 10 of your best soldiers to pursue and kill Raven Ashcrest." The squad leader winced. "Lord Hokage…He has not only evaded every assassination attempt on him, but he has killed the assassins and the contractor." "I thought you were the best…oh well." The squad leader regained his composure. "We will do it, Lord Hokage!"

Raven Ashcrest is heading to the clearing to clear his head (no pun intended) when he notices a kunai out of the corner of his eye. Raven immediately whirls around, blocks the kunai, and performs hand signs. "Ram-Snake-Ox-Horse-Rooster-Snake-Rat-Ox-Tiger! Water Style: Typhoon Storm Jutsu!" Immediately, swirling clouds form above the Leaf Village, bringing down torrential rain and high winds. The rain washes out his would-be killers. _10 Anbu!?! What the f!?! _Raven follows up with "Water Style: Water Dragon Jutsu!" A giant water dragon roars up out of the water and sweeps away three of the Anbu. _7-to-1. My kind of odds. _One of the Anbu performs the Paralysis Jutsu. Raven is frozen in his position. Another Anbu leaps out and decapitates him. Then they release the Jutsu.

Raven is actually hiding underground, waiting for the right time to strike. "Genjutsu: Infinite Darkness Jutsu!" All of a sudden, the Anbu are surrounded by total blackness. "What!?! I can't see anything!" Raven grinned. _Perfect. _One of the Anbu falls to the ground, dead. "What the hell?!? AAAAAGHH!" Raven stabs another one in the stomach, unseen. Three more Anbu flood in. "Where are you, Ashcrest?" "Right here." With that, he stabs that Anbu in the heart, then swings his body into one of his comrades. Raven grabs the one comrade's head and pulls him underground. "Earth Style: Headhunter Jutsu!" That Anbu suffocated to death. _Excellent. That leaves the squad leader. _With that, he dispelled the genjutsu and reappeared behind the leader, his sword to the leader's neck. "Alright, we're going to play a game. You're going to guess a number between 1-10. If you guess right, you get to live. If you guess wrong, the number that you picked is how you die. Now, what number am I thinking of?" The squad leader is clearly shaken. "Uh…4?" Raven grinned. "You're right! Now, tell me what I want to know or we'll play another round. First off, who sent you to kill me?" The squad leader replies, "I-I don't know!" Raven becomes angry. He presses his sword to the leader's neck, causing blood to trickle out. "Now: who sent you to kill me!!!" The squad leader refuses to answer. Raven then impales him with his sword. "Alright…it was…the Fifth…Hokage." The leader's body slumps to the ground. _The Fifth Hokage…grrrrrrrrr! She'll pay for this! Right now, I need to dispose of the bodies. _Raven plants exploding tags on each body, then blows them up. He jumps away from the charred scene.

_Later that evening…_

It is about 8:30 pm. Raven is walking down one of the pathways when someone taps him on the shoulder. He looks to his right, then hears "I'm over here, genius." He turns around…and is met with Sakura kissing him. At first he's shocked, then he returns it. Raven is thinking…_This feels so right!_ It lasts for about 10 seconds, then they part. "Sakura, I got something to show you! Come on!" With that, he starts running towards the place. "Raven! Wait up!" Sakura yells in a playful tone. When they're almost there, he tells her to close her eyes. "Raven, where are we going?" "You'll see-oh, wait, we're here! Open your eyes!" Sakura's hands flew to he mouth.

It's a lake with a reflection of the full moon on it. There are trees surrounding the lake. There are chairs at one end of the lake, because it overlooks Konoha. "Raven, it's beautiful." "Just like you, Sakura. Welcome to my hideout." She blushed at the compliment. "I come here to get away from the world, and my family." She smiled. "I can understand that." They both end up laughing. Raven laid down on the grass, with Sakura next to him. "Raven, look at the moon. It's awe-inspiring, isn't it?" Raven was feeling happier than he had been lately. "Yeah." "Hey, Raven?" "Yeah?" "When were you going to tell me you were an assassin?" Raven looked as if he'd just been hit by an 18-wheeler, then tazered at high voltage. "Aw, crap, you _knew_?" Sakura nodded. "Yeah, Aoi told me." Raven grimaced. "Dammit! I was going to tell you, but…" "But what?" "It's tough for an assassin to be in a relationship, because they put themselves and their loved ones in danger. I let my feelings get in the way! Aw, hell, Sakura, I'm sorry. I never wanted to put you in this position." Sakura became concerned. "You mean…" "Yes. You're in grave danger as well as your family. I'm sorry, Sakura." "Raven, wait!" But he had already leapt away. Sakura walked over to one of the chairs, and sat down in it. _Raven… _

Tsunade was in one of the casinos at the Leaf Village. "7-7-7! Yes!" Shizune had a worried look on her face. _This isn't good… _Just then, someone punches Tsunade, sending he flying through the machine and the wall, and crashing into a building. She rubbed her head. "What happened?" She heard a shout pierce the air. "You tried to have me _killed!" _Raven jumped down from a roof and nailed Tsunade with an axe kick. She hit the ground, hard. She got back up. "You…you're still alive?!" Raven rushed at her. She nailed a punch in his stomach, sending him reeling. _Ouch…that hurt. _Before he could tell what was going on, Tsunade axe-kicked the ground, creating a massive fissure. Raven backflipped to avoid it, but Tsunade had a clone hiding. The clone aimed a kick at his spine. He pivoted so it hit him in his chest. He felt at least three ribs crack. Raven coughed up blood. "Had enough?" Raven glared at the Hokage. "I never know when to stop trying." He made hand signs. Tsunade looked shocked. _What jutsu is this?!? _

Electricity started crackling around Raven's hand. He sprinted towards Tsunade, leaving afterimages. "White Lightning Blade!" Tsunade barely got to the side, but Raven managed to pierce through her shoulder. She made the signs for the Healing Jutsu, but Raven had a preemptive strike planned. He rushed toward her, then stopped. The world became black-and-white, with a circle similar to Neji's 8 Trigrams. "Earth Style: Hawk Palms Jutsu!" "2 Palms!" Raven struck 2 of Tsunade's chakra points, shutting them off. "4 Palms!" Raven struck 4 more of Tsunade's tenketsu. "8 Palms!" Raven and a shadow clone struck 8 chakra points. "16 Palms!" Tsunade is visibly shaken at this point. Raven and the clone shut off 16 chakra points. "32 Palms!" Tsunade suffered some internal damage, while Raven and two clones shut off 32 chakra points. "64 Palms!" Raven ruptured her spleen while shutting off 64 tenketsu. "128 Palms!" Raven and three more clones shut off 128 of Tsunade's tenketsu and sent her flying back. She got up and tried the healing jutsu again, but she couldn't focus her chakra.

"What?!? My chakra…I can't focus it!" Raven, meanwhile focuses chakra in his palm. "Take this!" He rushes to the right of her with his palm outstretched. "You missed by a l-my aorta! It's been severed! Wait…a chakra scalpel." Raven nodded. "Bingo. By inhibiting your chakra, I've left you unable to heal major injuries, like…" "A severed artery." Raven chuckled. "Unless Shizune or Sakura can find you soon, you're dead." Tsunade clenched her fist. "You'll have to live with the fact that you killed the Fifth Hokage." This nailed Raven. "What would the village think of you? What would _Sakura _think of you?" Tsunade smiled. This had clearly struck a chord with him. Raven looked unsure of what to do. Shizune happened to walk out of a nearby building. "Lady Tsunade! Where are you! There you are, Lady Tsunade!" Raven turned into liquid so Shizune couldn't see him. "Shizune…I need…medical attention. My aorta…is severed." "What?!?" Shizune started using the Healing Jutsu on Tsunade.

Sakura was about to leave the lake when someone tapped her on the shoulder. She looked to her left. "Over here, Sakura!" "Raven…what happened?" He embraced her and whispered, "Someone made me think about how my actions affect everyone. Love is a gift from God, meant to be shared with others. And if I'm going to be a jerk about it, it's better to have loved than not at all." Sakura smiled and whispered back, "Raven, that was deep. I never knew." Raven chuckled. "Hang on, Sakura. I got something for you." He brought up a column of water, froze it, and then cut it with several kunai until he made an…ice swan. "For you, Sakura." "Wow, Raven, it's amazing. How can you control ice?" Raven looked shocked. "I can control ice? Awesome!"

_Next time: How can Raven control ice? Is Tsunade dead? And how will this affect Raven's standing with the Senior Council? Find out next chapter! _


	13. Chapter 8

-1Rising

Chapter 8-Hyoton Bloodline! Raven's Great Escape!

DISCLAIMER: I own Raven Ashcrest. I don't own Naruto or any of the characters. Also, the yen amounts are up-to-date, with $1.00 equaling about 100 yen.

"I can control ice? Awesome!" Raven was shocked. Sakura put her hands on her hips. "Raven, is there something you're not telling me?" Raven started sweating. "Uh, no, not at all. Later!" Raven then disappears before Sakura can react. She is left wondering what happened. Sakura picked up the ice swan, looked at it, and put it back down. _Hmm…_

Tsunade was back in her office, signing paperwork. The hospital discharged her yesterday. She'd been in the hospital for 2 days. She had a bored look on her face. "Shizune, get me a bottle of sake." "Yes, Lady Tsunade." Shizune ran off to grab the bottle. Tsunade was thinking about her fight with Raven. _That kid fights on the level of an S-Class ninja, yet he's only a Chunin! And that jutsu Hawk Palms…that's a twist on a Hyuga technique. _"Lady Tsunade! Here's your sake." "Thanks, Shizune." While Tsunade uncorked her sake, Raven was still asleep. An Anbu crept into his room and tried to stab him.

Raven grabbed the kunai, still asleep, and threw the Anbu in the general direction of his window. The Anbu had crashed through the window and hit the ground below. He woke up, realized what happened, and yelled "I'm the best there is! You can't get me that easy!" Raven jumped out the window with his sword brandished, and stabbed the Anbu in the chest. The Anbu turned out to be a different person altogether, much like the Shapeshifting Technique. Raven then realized he was outside in an undershirt and boxers. "Aw, _crap!" _Raven turned to liquid, then snuck back into his house.

Naruto was practicing the Wind Rasengan so it could equal White Lightning Blade. "Gotta…keep going…Wind Style: Rasengan!" Naruto rushed at a tree and plowed into it. There was a gigantic hole, then the tree exploded. "That was good, yet I can do better! But I can't train on an empty stomach." With that, he walked to Ichiraku Ramen Bar.

Raven got himself out of bed at 10:30 am, got dressed and went out the door without breakfast. He walked to Ichiraku Ramen Bar to grab a bowl of ramen. He saw Naruto already there, eating what seemed like a gigantic bowl of the house special. "Yo, Naruto, what's up?" Teuchi grinned at the sight of seeing one of his regular customers. "Hey, Raven, want to try my new super-spicy ramen?" Raven shrugged. "Yeah, why not." Ayame whipped up a bowl and served it up. "Thanks." Raven tasted the ramen. "Mmmm…that's good. Oof! Hot ramen!" Raven ate about 10 more bites before something happened. Steam came out of his ears. Raven got off his chair and started running around in a panic. "Hot, Hot, HOT!!! AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!!!" Then he stopped. He wasn't feeling so well. "RAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!!!" As he screamed, fire came out of his mouth, like a dragon. "Whoa! I'm not burning anymore. In fact…Rat-Snake-Horse-Tiger-Dragon! Fire Style: Dragon's Breath Jutsu!" As if on cue, the fire blew out of his mouth similar to Fire Style: Fire Ball Jutsu, except in a concentrated stream. He smiled. "Hey, Teuchi, how much for 10 bottles of that hot sauce?" "Hmm…how does 3,500 yen sound?" "How about…2,300 yen?" "Deal." Raven handed over the money while Teuchi gave him a special scroll. "What's this?" "Just use a Summoning Jutsu. It'll give you a bottle of hot sauce. Drink a few gulps…BAM! If you do it twice…well, you can find out." "Thanks, Teuchi!" Raven vanished. He had an errand to take care of.

Santo bleeped on Raven's headset. "Hey, hey, hey, Raven! What's crackin'?" Raven rolled his eyes. "What is it now, Santo?" "Dude, there's a rogue ninja fleeing the Cloud Anbu headed for the Haze Village. He's wanted for assault, grand larceny from the daimyo, and murder. That totals to about…58,900,350 yen." Raven whistled. "Wow. That dude's worth a lot for those charges. What makes him special?" "There's a rumor that it's a liquid assassin charged with the crimes." With that piece of knowledge, Raven ran for the forest. Unknown to him, Sakura was following him there.

Raven sensed somebody was following him, so he hid behind one of the trees and cloned himself after he changed into his Darkblade persona. "There you are, Raven!" Sakura leapt away after the clone, while the real Darkblade jumped toward the rogue Cloud-nin. "You won't catch me! I am the leader of the Watariga Shinobi, Kaiba!" Darkblade narrowed his eyes. _Wait a minute…oh yeah, Kaiba Isshin! He is a liquid assassin! But what's he doing with the Watariga? _Kaiba finally stopped. Darkblade disappeared behind a tree. "Kaiba! Long time no see!" Kaiba looked surprised. "Raven! Is that you?" Raven popped out from behind a tree. "Well, whaddya know! It is Raven! How ya doing, buddy?" Kaiba stood about 5'9" and was 18, with green hair and black eyes. He wore a chain mail shirt with a vest over it. He also had a pair of shorts with a shuriken holster on his left thigh. He sported blue sandals and carried a chokuto at his side. Raven grinned. "Doing good! Are you the rogue Cloud-nin?" "No! I'm telling ya, I've been framed! I was in the wrong place at the wrong time." Raven was confused. Kaiba told him, "Listen, there was somebody else at the crime scene. Who was it…who was it…the dude looked like Zane Shiramura." "That dude! Oh, he was bad to the frickin' _bone." _"Yeah. I saw him steal the money and murder the daimyo's wife, but he managed to escape. I was chasing him down, but the stupid Anbu mistook me for him! Anyways, I hooked up with the Watariga dudes. They're givin' me a place to hide, in return for me becoming their leader. I heard their old leader fell off a tree." Raven scratched his head. "Raven! There's Zane!" Raven drew his sword. "What the hell are we doing here then? Come on!" Raven and Kaiba dashed after Zane.

Meanwhile, Sakura caught up to the clone. "Raven! Finally I caught you!" The clone snapped his fingers. "Sorry, wrong Raven." POOF! The clone disappeared. Sakura became really angry. "RAVEN! You'll pay for this trick!" Raven winced. _Shit…Sakura found the clone! Aw, man, I'm dead for sure! _"Who was that screaming, Raven?" "My…um…girlfriend." "Is she hot?" Raven holds up a picture of Sakura. Kaiba whistled. "Damn, she _is _hot!"

"Well, what a nice reunion." Zane had appeared in front of them. He stood 6' and 17 years old, with black hair and gray-blue eyes. He wore a shirt under a camouflage jacket. He also had a pair of camo pants with a shuriken holster on his right thigh, and wielded dual katanas, as well as green sandals. "Zane, how nice to see you again! I thought you died in the war." Raven exclaimed sarcastically. "Whatever. Kaiba, you're going to take the fall, and Raven, you're going to die here." Zane unsheathed his swords and rushed at Raven, attempting a scissors slash. Kaiba ducked it and slashed at Zane's leg. He missed, but Raven nailed Zane with Earth Style: Headhunter Jutsu. Kaiba followed up with "Earth Style: Great Mud River!" Zane was swept away by a flowing mud stream. "Earth Style: Mud Dragon Bomb!" A giant mud dragon rose out of the river and blew a stream of mud at Zane.

Raven drank a few gulps of Ichiraku Hot Sauce. "What's that going to do, Raven? _Burn _me to death?" Zane was incredulous. Somehow he'd escaped the mud river. "Rat-Snake-Horse-Tiger-Dragon! Fire Style: Dragon's Breath Jutsu!" Raven blew a highly concentrated stream of fire at Zane. He jumped to the side, but his arm was burned. Raven chucked the bottle of hot sauce in the air and shattered it with a kunai. "Fire Style: Dragon's Breath Jutsu!" Raven ignited the hot sauce, causing an explosion and raining fire on Zane. "Score!" Just then, Sakura found Raven and Kaiba watching an explosion. "There you are, Raven!" Raven turned around…and the smile dropped off his face. "Sakura, please, not right now!" "Raven, you tricked me so you could do a contract!" Zane took advantage of Sakura and raced towards them, sword poised to strike. Raven caught the glint of the sword out the corner of his eye. "Watch out!" Raven whirled around to guard with his sword. It worked, but his sword shattered. Three of the shards pierced his chest, one landing inches from his heart. He collapsed from the recoil of the attack and the shards. "Raven! You…bastard!" Sakura then focused chakra into her fists and whaled on Zane. Kaiba winced several times in 30 seconds. _Wow…Sakura hits hard. No wonder Raven started dating her. _When Sakura finished beating up Zane, he had a ruptured spleen, seven broken ribs, both arms cut, and a twisted leg. Sakura brushed off her hands and said, "Now to extract the shards from Raven's body." She focused chakra in her hands and extracted one of the shards from his chest. Immediately, blood began spurting from the shard wound. Sakura kept her breathing under control and began to extract the second shard when a flurry of kunai and shuriken came flying at them. Kaiba deflected them all and told her, "We have to get somewhere safe! You get out of here! I'll take Raven and go!" "No way! I'll take Raven while you block the projectiles!" "Fine." Kaiba and Sakura jump back towards the Leaf Village while carrying Raven.

Naruto and Lee were sent on a B-Rank mission to protect a courier-nin while she was carrying an important package. "Lee, I'm bored. When is there going to be _action!_" "Fear not, Naruto, as I feel action is coming our way." Sakura and Kaiba had just passed them. Naruto turned and yelled to Sakura, "What happened to Raven?" "I'll tell you-AAAAAAAAAAHH!!!" Three Haze Ninja cut off the group. Lee looked at Naruto with an "I told you so" look on his face. Naruto, Lee, and the courier ran to help Sakura and Kaiba. Sakura put Raven's body on the ground. Naruto took a look at it. His thoughts…_Raven, you've fought for us. Now it's our turn to fight. _"Shadow Clone Jutsu!" Naruto created four clones. "Leaf Hurricane!" Lee kicked at the first Haze Ninja. He ducked it, but Lee hit him with a lower kick to the head. He was out cold. Sakura punched the ground, causing it to rumble and split, which knocked the other 2 off balance. Kaiba impaled the second ninja, killing him. Naruto formed the Rasengan in his hand while two clones held the last Haze Ninja and rammed into the him. The sheer power had internally damaged him. "That was too easy." Then the courier-nin brightened up. "Mr. Isshin, this package is for you." Kaiba took the package. It felt a little heavy. He opened it. "Hey, it's the gauntlets I ordered from that blacksmith! Sweet!" He put them on. They were white, made of chain mail, and the right gauntlet had a niche in it, allowing him to draw his sword quickly. "Let's go!" And so, Kaiba, Sakura, Naruto, Lee, and Raven (carried by two of Naruto's clones) all went back to the Leaf Village.

Zane woke up to find himself in a dark room. "Where am I?" "You're in the Akatsuki hideout." Itachi walked out of the darkness. "Ah, the true heir of the Sharingan. Why did you take me here?" "You fit the criteria to join the Akatsuki, and there's one ring available. Do you want it?" Zane nodded. "Sorry. You'll have to prove yourself first." Zane clenched both fists. "What do I have to do?" Itachi pondered for a moment. "You must capture Raven Ashcrest and interrogate him on the whereabouts of the last living member of the Sabata clan." Zane grinned evilly. "I'll do it!"

_Next time: Raven is incapacitated and Zane is coming for him. And Kaiba has his own intentions. How will Naruto and the rest of the gang react to this? And what is Tsunade planning? Find out next chapter!_


	14. Chapter 9

Rising

Chapter 10: Team 7 and Team Guy (sort of)

DISCLAIMER: I own Raven Ashcrest. I don't own Naruto, or any of the characters.

Guy is taking his students out in the forest for some "special" training. Lee is running on his hands, trying to catch Guy. Tenten is walking besides Neji, who looks indifferent. "Stop here, everyone!" "What are we doing here?" Tenten asked. Guy smiled. "You are going to spar with Team 7!" Lee saluted Guy and went "Yeah!" Neji sighed. Tenten said, "Oh my god!" Lee asked, "Guy-sensei, where's Team 7?" Just then, Naruto and Sai appeared in front of them. "Now Tenten, you will fight Sakura. Lee, you will fight Sai. And Neji, you will fight Naruto." Lee counted only two of them. "Where's Raven?" Naruto scratched his head. "I haven't seen him at all lately. Nor have I seen Sakura." Sai nodded. "Normally, they'd be here by now."

Raven was fleeing from 5 Jonin, falsely accused of theft and murder. "Stop, kid! You're under arrest!" Raven turned to face them and immediately made hand signs. "Take this! Ice Style: Deep Freeze Jutsu!" A blast of cold emanated from Raven's hands, freezing everything around him. Although it wouldn't take long to melt due to the Sun, the ice served as a distraction while he got away. "Alright, everyone. One, two, three! Fire Style: Fire Ball Jutsu!" Although there were 5 fireballs, they barely scratched the ice. "Damn, this kid is smart. And how is the ice so resilient?" Raven was moving through the forest with two clones, hoping to confuse them further. _If this works right, the Jonin will follow the clones. Meanwhile, I can double back towards the Leaf Village._

It worked! Raven hid underneath a rock while the Jonin chased the two clones. He moved underground, hoping to get to his house. After a few miles, Raven popped up in what seemed like his house. (In reality, it was Sakura's house.) Just then, Sakura walked out of the shower. It took a few minutes for them to realize what happened, then… "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!!!" "AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!!! What are you doing here?!?" Sakura turned bright red. Raven turned to run, but got thrown out the window instead. "Oww…my head…" "PERVERT!!" Raven rubbed his head. "Girls…wait, I know I was gonna say something. Damn! I forgot."

Lee hit Sai with Leaf Hurricane. Sai melted into ink. The ink glued Lee's feet to the ground, making him unable to move. Sai then slashed Lee across the stomach. Neji hit Naruto with Rotation, sending him flying away. It turned out to be a clone. Naruto popped out from underground and nailed Neji with a hard uppercut. Lee broke free of the ink and aimed a high kick at Sai's head. Sai ducked and slashed at Lee's knee. Lee jumped, then kicked Sai into the air. Naruto then axe kicked Neji. Naruto's shadow clone knocked Sai out with a well-placed kick before he realized what happened. "Uh-oh." Neji hit Naruto with an uppercut. Lee then followed with "Primary Lotus!" Naruto vanished. Naruto then headbutted Neji, knocking him out. That left Lee. Naruto rushed at Lee with the Rasengan. Lee channeled the power of two gates into his fist. Lee ran against a purple background. Naruto ran against a green background. KABOOM!!! Air rushed into the gap created by the attacks, then exploded, sending Naruto and Lee flying away.

Raven was walking down Konoha's main street when he was hit in the back of the head. He saw stars, then black. He woke up to find himself in a warehouse. "Where am I?" "Raven, how nice to see you." Zane walked out of a room. "Dammit Zane, what do you want from me?" Zane rubbed his chin. "Oh, I don't know…how about telling me where the Sabata heir is?!" "I already told you, you son of a bitch, I don't know where he or she is!!!" Zane ripped out his katana and stabbed Raven in the stomach. Raven winced, then coughed up blood. "Tell me the truth! NOW!!!" Raven closed his eyes, then opened them with the Raisengan active. "You want the truth? Truth number one: you're gay with Itachi. Truth number two: I'm cooler than you. Truth number three: I don't know anything about the Sabata clan. And finally, you're an idiot."

With that, Raven disappeared into thin air. Zane shouted, "I'm not gay with Itachi! I'm gay with Kisame." Kisame stabbed Zane with his sword, then handed his body to Tobi. Tobi dumped Zane's body in a trashcan.

Sakura had just dodged Tenten's Rising Twin Dragons. Tenten picked up the weapons with strings attached to her hands and threw them at Sakura. Sakura flipped over shuriken, slid under kunai, sliced through chain axes, ran between scythes, and delivered a hard uppercut to Tenten's jaw. Tenten went flying into the air, but flipped over and threw even more weapons at Sakura. She sighed and with the grace of a cheerleader, flipped over them all.

Raven was 3 feet from the Leaf Village when he was surrounded by 20 Anbu swords. Raven grimaced. "Heh heh…h-hi everybody. What's up?" Two Anbu grabbed his arms while the squad leader walked in front of him. Just then, Sasuke dashed by them, Itachi supposedly in the village. "What the f!? That was Sasuke Uchiha, and you're worried about _me? _He could destroy the village to kill Itachi!" "Dammit, you're right. Bento, Jin, watch Raven. The rest of you, follow me! We're going after Uchiha!" 18 Anbu dashed after Sasuke, while Raven was stuck.

Sakura was walking down the main street of Konoha when Sasuke dashed in front of her. "Sasuke?" He turned around. "Sakura…" She walked over to him. "Why are you here?" Sasuke rolled his eyes. "I'm looking for Itach-holy shit!" He activated the Sharingan, unsheathed his sword, and raced at the Anbu. Sasuke basically owned the Anbu while Sakura watched the carnage. By the time he was done, 10 Anbu were dead. The rest had fled. He cast an almost mournful look at Sakura, and jumped away, dead-set on Itachi. Sakura closed her eyes…_Sasuke…we used to be teammates. Now you push us away to kill Itachi. _She opened her eyes, and with a determined look in her eyes, jumped after Sasuke.

Raven was bored, seeing he couldn't go anywhere without the two Anbu noticing. He remembered something about the Shadow Possession Jutsu and how it could bind up to nine opponents at a time. He didn't know how to do it, however. _Wait…if I combine the Leaf Body Flicker with my liquid abilities, I might be able to imitate the Shadow Possession Jutsu! _He turned liquid, then performed the Leaf Body Flicker. The Anbu noticed he'd vanished. "Where'd he go?!" Raven reappeared in midair, then did the Leaf Body Flicker again. The Anbu unsheathed their swords, preparing for an assault. Raven, utilizing the liquid form, turned his shadow into liquid and directed it towards the Anbu, thanks to the extension from the leaves. "What? I can't move!" Raven pulled three shuriken out of his pocket. The Anbu did the same. He threw the shuriken and ducked at the last second. The Anbu ducked, but knocked their heads together. Raven released the Water Bind, turned solid, and raced off towards the village to stop Sasuke.

Naruto heard rumors that Sasuke was in the village, and remembered his fight at the Valley of the End. _Sasuke is strong with his cursed seal, but I'm stronger! I'll stop Sasuke even it destroys me! _With his mind set, he rushed towards where Sakura and Raven were headed: to find Sasuke.

Sasuke was jumping through Konoha, hunting Itachi. _Itachi…you will die! I'll make sure of that! _Then he realized that Sakura was following him. _I can't have trackers. I have to shake her off my trail. _Sasuke suddenly used the Body Flicker in combination with several clones to confuse her. _Don't even try that! _She cloned herself, still following Sasuke. As she passed the casino, Naruto joined up with her. "Looking for Sasuke?" "Yeah. You too?" "Oh yeah. Let's do this." Naruto and Sakura had joined forces to stop Sasuke.

Sasuke jumped to the top of the Hokage Rocks, where he thought he had evaded Naruto and Sakura. He walked along the top when he got tripped up. Raven threw off his disguise and stood up. "Uchiha." Sasuke brushed some dirt off his shorts and looked at Raven. "Ashcrest." "Why are you here, Sasuke?!" Sasuke's eyes narrowed. "Where's Itachi?!" "Itachi isn't here! You were tricked!" Sasuke clenched his fist and activated the Sharingan. "You're just protecting him!" Raven activated the Raisengan. "Why would I protect him?! I hate him!!" Sasuke thought to himself. _If Raven hates Itachi as well, maybe he can help me to kill him. _Sasuke looked at Raven and smiled. "Well then, you want to help me find him?" "If it means killing him, hell yeah." Sasuke chuckled. "What about Sakura and Naruto?" Raven folded his arms. "Relax. I'll take care of th-incoming!" Sasuke unsheathed his sword, as did Raven. They backflipped to avoid a massive storm of kunai, shuriken, and spears. Eight Anbu appeared in the midst of the storm. Raven looked at Sasuke, and they both nodded. "Ninja Art: Hidden Mist Jutsu!" A thick fog surrounded Raven, Sasuke, and the Anbu. Sasuke, using his Sharingan, figured out where the Anbu were and decapitated two of them. Raven, utilizing the Fenice de Luna, tripped up four of the Anbu. Sasuke, using three clones, killed the Anbu with his sword. That left two. Raven, unsheathing the Fenice de Sol, made hand signs. "Fire Style: Phoenix Blaze Jutsu!" The mist was dispelled by a fiery vortex surrounding the Anbu. Raven cut through the fire with the Fenice de Sol and spun around with his sword, decapitating the Anbu.

Naruto and Sakura were still looking for Sasuke when Naruto saw a vortex of fire on top of the Hokage Rocks. "Sakura! Come on! He's on the Hokage Rocks!" Sakura followed Naruto to the monument.

Sasuke looked at Raven. "Not bad, Ashcrest." "Back at you, Uchiha." Raven caught two blurs out the corner of his eye. "Crap! Naruto and Sakura know we're here!" Raven grimaced. Sasuke sighed. "Whatever. You know where to find me." Raven was confused. "No, I don't." "Exactly. Later." Sasuke vanished, leaving a totally confused Raven. Just then, Sakura and Naruto got to the top of the Hokage Rocks. Sakura asked, "Raven, where did Sasuke go? Raven? RAVEN!!" Raven snapped out of his confusion. "Oh, uh, he vanished before I could grab him." Naruto noticed the corpses of the Anbu. "Then why are there eight dead Anbu?" Raven turned to face Naruto. "It was another assassination attempt by the Fifth Hokage. She hates me."

Sakura put her hands on her hips. "Then what's that piece of fabric?" Sure enough, it was a piece of the Uchiha clan symbol. "It was a joint assassination attempt. The Anbu tried to kill Sasuke and I at the same time." Naruto growled. "Then why didn't you stop him?" "We teamed up to stop the assassins." Sakura was steamed. "You had the perfect chance to stop him and you blew it!" Raven was angered by that. "If you were in my situation, you would have done the same thing! Then you would have tried to get him to stay by selling yourself out!!!" Sakura couldn't believe what Raven just said to her. "_Excuse _me?!" "You heard me!" Naruto clenched his fist and stepped in front of Sakura. "What the f is your problem?!" "YOU!" With that, Raven jabbed Naruto in the stomach, then followed up with a butterfly kick, sending him flying off the rocks. "Raven! What the hell is wrong with you?!" Raven glared at Sakura. "Don't start with me," and he said it with such venom it sent chills down Sakura's spine. He jumped off the rocks and started towards the lake. Sakura jumped down to find Naruto. When she found him however, it was a clone. She was surprised. _Then where's the real Naruto?_

It was twilight when Raven got to the lake. _Man, this has been a bad week. Maybe I can finally relax. _When Raven sat down, Naruto punched him into the lake. "That's for insulting Sakura!" Then, Naruto noticed black clouds form in the sky. The lake was bubbling. Five geysers shot up into the air, and Raven was riding in the central one in liquid form. Naruto tapped into the Kyubi chakra. Raven raced across the lake. Naruto was sprinting on all fours towards him. Raven blocked Naruto's claw slash and aimed a high roundhouse at his head. Naruto ducked it and spin-kicked at Raven's stomach. Raven backflipped away. He turned solid and triggered the phoenix chakra. Naruto made the Rasengan in his hand. Raven charged White Lightning Blade in his hand. The two attacks were about to clash when Kakashi appeared in between then and redirected their attacks to nearby water towers. "Huh?" "What?!" Yamato then appeared and used the First Hokage's technique to forcefully turn Naruto and Raven back to themselves. "Whatever. I'm going home." Raven jumped towards his house.

_Next time: Is this the end for Raven and Sakura's relationship? The Senior Council has decided a course of action, but what is it? How will Raven's fight with Naruto affect the village's opinion of him? Find out next chapter!_


	15. Chapter 10

-1Rising

Chapter 11: Bacardi, Bar Fights, and Arguments

DISCLAIMER: I own Raven Ashcrest. I do not own Naruto, or any of the characters. If I did, why would I be writing this?

Raven was having a bad week. Tsunade had tried to kill him 20 times, he was a wanted fugitive, his work as an assassin was in danger, and to top it off, he'd gotten in a fight with Naruto and Sakura over Sasuke! He got up at 6:00 am, got dressed and walked to Sakura's house. He had an emerald bracelet, wrapped up, to give to Sakura as a peace offering. He knocked on the door. Her mom answered it. "Who is it? Oh, it's you. SAKURA!!! Someone's at the door!" "Coming!" She walked down the stairs. "What do you want?" Raven handed her the gift. "I'm sorry for what I did. I overreacted. I was hoping you'd forgive me." "Apology _not _accepted." She slammed the door in his face. Raven sighed and started walking to Naruto's house. Sakura went upstairs to her room and opened the present. Her eyes widened. She looked at the bracelet, flipped it over, and noticed some text on it. It read: _To Sakura, my angel. You didn't run when I told you about the phoenix. You like me for who I am, not for my looks or brains. Thank you. Love, Raven._

Tears welled up in her eyes. "Raven…thank you." She got off her bed and thought, _Oh man. I really screwed up. I'm going to go apologize to him right now. _She walked downstairs and out the door. Meanwhile, Raven was at Naruto's house, holding an Ichiraku gift certificate, worth 10,000 yen. He knocked on the door. "What?! Oh, it's you." Naruto slammed the door in his face. Raven left the gift certificate there and walked to find the nearest bar. Along the way, he got so many evil looks he couldn't count them all.

Tsunade was talking to the Senior Council. "What do we do about the Ashcrest boy? I know we can't kill him, because I've tried 20 times, and he's not dead." Homura said, "He needs to be run out of town." Koharu said, "He needs to be arrested." Tsunade was struck with a brilliant idea. "We'll frame him for some horrid crime, like murder of the Hokage or one of the advisors!" All three smiled. "Excellent idea. We will proceed at once." Tsunade went to go find ketchup.

Raven walked into the Hiroshima Bar. He sat on one of the stools. "Bartender! Pass me a Bacardi Vanilla, would you?" The bartender gave him an evil look. "Sorry, we don't serve to blue-haired people." Raven's jaw dropped. "Why not!?!" "Well, if you have blue hair, you have to be 18 or older. You're 15. Therefore, no service." Raven stood up. "What?! Half the blue-haired people in here are under 18, and you served them!!" The bartender sighed. "Sorry, no service." "Fine, I'll get it myself." Raven jumped over the counter and grabbed a Bacardi Vanilla. This caught the attention of the patrons. "Hey kid, put the booze back!" "What are you gonna do about it? You're all drunk!" One of the bald guys got out of his chair. "We take that offensively. Now put down the booze, and we'll let you go without a fight." Raven was defiant. "I have every right to sit here and drink a Bacardi because half the entire bar is under 18, and they were served their drinks!" The bald guy shrugged. "Whatever." Raven sat at the bar, and was about to drink when Baldy took an empty bottle and cracked Raven across the head with it. He hit the counter, then the recoil made him fall out of his stool and onto the floor. He got up rubbing his head. "What the f is wrong with you people?!" Baldy stepped up with clenched fists. "You got a problem with us, punk?" "Actually, I do."

"That's it!" Baldy slammed Raven in the stomach with his fist. Raven doubled over, pretending to be in pain. Baldy walked over to kick him. Raven lashed out with a roundhouse kick, sweeping Baldy off his feet and to the floor. Several of the other patrons got up and cracked their knuckles. Two of them rushed at him. Raven picked up the first guy and hurled him over a table and into the second guy. A third person picked up a chair and threw it at Raven. He ducked it, picked up a beer bottle and chucked it at the third guy. It nailed the guy in the head, cutting him open, as well as spilling beer all over the floor. Five of the twelve other patrons sprinted towards him…and slipped on the beer-covered floor. Raven backflipped over the counter to avoid being taken out from underneath. The five hit the counter and knocked themselves out. The bartender was cowering underneath the counter. "What? Scared of a little fight like this? Chicken." Raven flipped over the counter again. This time, he threw another beer bottle, but with an exploding tag on the underside. It hit the wall and shattered. One of them jeered, "You drunk, kid? You missed!" Raven raised his right eyebrow. "Did I? Whoops." At that point, the exploding tag went BOOM!! It blew a massive hole in the wall and sent the other seven flying out. One of the showgirls walked downstairs, saw the mess, and ran right back up. Raven sat down at the stool and finally got to drink his Bacardi.

Sakura walked into the Hiroshima Bar, and saw broken tables, unconscious patrons, a hole in the wall, and Raven drinking a Bacardi. "Raven, what the hell are you doing here?!" Raven got off his stool with no trouble. "Oh, hey Sakura. You like the bracelet?" She smiled. "Yeah, it's amazing. How much did you spend on it?" Raven shrugged. "I don't know, but it didn't come cheap." She noticed Raven's eyes were bloodshot. "Are you drunk!?" Raven shook his head. "This is the only one I've had." "Then why are you here?" Raven rolled his eyes. "You know when everything just goes wrong the whole week? Some people solve it by fighting, some solve it by eating. I've had a bad week, so I drank a single Bacardi. That's it. One." She looked at the bar again. "What happened?" Raven smiled. "Funny story. You see, the bartender here wouldn't serve me 'cause I had blue hair, even though every other blue-haired guy here was served, and they're under 18. So I got it myself, and it started a bar fight. Here's the bar now. They'll rebuild it in a week or two." She sighed. "Raven, what happened when you tried to apologize to Naruto?" "He slammed the door in my face." Sakura cringed. "Raven?" "Yeah?" "What really happened on the monument?" Raven anime-sweatdropped. "Oh god. You really wanna hear the story?" Sakura nodded. "I want the truth."

"Alright. I was looking for Sasuke too. He was on top of the monument and I was hiding out there. We had an argument about Itachi not being there, then he asked me to help him find Itachi and kill him." Sakura frowned. "What did you say?" "I said yes." "WHAT!!? Why?!" Raven rubbed his temples. "I have a vendetta against Itachi as well." Sakura was in a bad mood now. "Are you going to chase after Itachi and push away your friends like Sasuke did?" "No, of course not!" "How do I know you're not going to?" "You have my word on it! I never go back on promises!" Sakura didn't believe him. Although she loved Raven, she couldn't trust him. "Then promise me right now! Promise me right now that you won't become obsessed with revenge!" Raven raised his voice. "I just did like 20 seconds ago!" "Raven, is that my jade dolphin over there?" He turned around, and somehow, that was her jade dolphin teetering on the edge of the counter. Outside the bar, a blonde-haired ninja silently sprinted away. (_Damn you, Ino…) _"NOOOOOO!!" Raven jumped towards the dolphin in slow-motion. He thought he was going to catch it before it hit the ground, but it broke on his head. He had a piece of the fin in his hand. _Oh f. _Tears were running down Sakura's face. She channeled chakra into her fist and raced at him.

He grabbed her fist with his left hand. She aimed a haymaker at his stomach. He caught it with his other hand. "Sakura, it wasn't my fault!" "You broke the only remaining item of my grandparents!" "Damn it, Sakura, listen to me!" "Why did you do it!?" "Listen to me, for crying out loud!!" She kicked him in the stomach. He didn't hesitate. He raised his hand and slapped her. She stopped crying out of shock. "How could you, Raven?!" "You weren't listening!" "How could you treat someone like this?!" "You don't like how I'm treating you?" She stood up. "No, I don't!" "Then go date someone else! Go date Naruto!!" "Maybe I will!!!" "Fine then! We're…THROUGH!!!" She was stunned. Did Raven just dump her? "In response to your question, yes, I just dumped you. Have a nice life!!" He walked out of the bar and out of Sakura's life. Sakura didn't believe it. In 1 hour, she lost one of her other teammates. She walked outside, went looking for Naruto, and saw Raven walking away. Then she felt weak, and collapsed. She thought it was a cold. Little did she know she had less than 24 hours to live.

_Next time: How will Raven react after hearing about Sakura's condition? How will Naruto react? Tsunade has a plan, but is it going to be foiled? Find out next time!_


	16. AUTHOR'S NOTE 3

Rising

AUTHOR'S NOTE: The Calm Before the Storm

Hello Rising Faithful,

This next chapter is very important, as it concerns the death of one of the main characters. So prepare yourself, because this is gonna be the edgiest chapter of Rising so far. On a lighter note, I'm holding a contest! Whoever becomes my 10th, 15th, 20th, or other reviewer similar to those will get themselves animated into a chapter of my fic (with permission of course)! They also get a cookie!

Also, I want you to pick the theme song for Chapter 12: Never Too Late by Three Days Grace, On My Own by Three Days Grace, or Given Up by Linkin Park. If you have any other ideas, please put them in a review.

Anyway, Chapter 12 will come within 10 days. Sorry for the fake chapter.

Thanks for your patience,

Phoenix MetaBlade


	17. Chapter 11

Rising

Chapter 12: The Hurricane Has Come Ashore

AUTHOR'S NOTE: I own Raven Ashcrest. I don't own Naruto, or any of the characters.

Sakura had collapsed on the ground outside the Hiroshima Bar. Many citizens thought she was drunk, so they just kept walking. Kiba, however, was walking about 3 miles away. He sniffed the air. It reeked with alcohol and smoke. So, Kiba walked to the Hiroshima Bar and found Sakura lying unconscious. _Oh god. She's unconscious and it's not because of alcohol. _He picked her up in a piggyback position and ran to the nearest hospital. He burst through the front doors.

The receptionist asked, "How can I help you, sir?" "Something's wrong with this girl! She might be dying!" The receptionist chuckled. "There's a very slim chance of that. But if you're really concerned, put her on the gurney and we'll take her back for examination." Kiba gently laid Sakura's body on the gurney, and they wheeled her away. He sat down in one of the chairs and waited. _Man, I hope it isn't serious. _

Naruto heard that Raven caused a bar fight and Sakura was in the hospital. _What do I do first? Should I comfort Sakura or kick Raven's ass first? Arrgh!! _Eventually he decided to dash to the hospital. He burst through the front doors. "How can I help you, sir?" "Can you tell me where Sakura Haruno is?" "I'm sorry, but she's undergoing examination right now." Just then, the phone rang. The receptionist picked it up. "Hello? Yes. She has what?! Yes, yes, I'll tell him. Thank you." She hung up the phone. Naruto leaned on the desk. "What's wrong?" "Naruto, your friend has a terminal illness. She has less than 12 hours to live." Naruto slammed his fist on the desk. Kiba stood up. "WHAT!?!" exclaimed both Naruto and Kiba. Naruto turned to Kiba. "Kiba, go tell Raven what happened. I'll go back and see how she's doing." Kiba rolled his eyes and ran out the hospital doors.

Raven was still asleep at 10:00 am. He heard a knock on the door. Raven got his clothes on, and then walked downstairs. "Hey, Kiba, how's it going?" "Raven, Sakura has a terminal illness. She doesn't have long to live." Raven sighed. "Hell, she deserves it." He turned to walk away when Kiba kicked him upside the head. Raven hit the floor, hard. "Dude, how could you say that about your girlfriend?!" He got back up. "Oh, so you haven't heard. We broke up yesterday." Kiba's jaw dropped. "Shocking, isn't it?" Raven asked sarcastically. "Just come on!" Kiba knocked out Raven with a jab to the head, picked him up, and dragged him to the hospital.

Naruto was looking frantically for Sakura's room when he ran right by it. "Naruto!" He turned around. "Sakura! How are you feeling?" She sighed. "I feel like crap, especially since I know I don't have long to live." Naruto bowed his head. "Yeah, I know." Naruto took a hard look at Sakura, to take in as much of her as possible. He leaned in a little bit, but lost his balance. He landed on top of her. She closed her eyes and parted her lips. Naruto leaned in until his lips touched hers. Sakura was thinking, _Wow. I feel…on fire! _Naruto's thoughts…_Finally! I get to kiss Sakura without her bitch-slapping me! _The kiss lasted for 20 seconds or so, and then they parted. Sakura suddenly felt pain in her chest, like a weight was on top of her. "What's wrong!?" "Weight…pressing…down. AAAAAH!" She started coughing up blood.

Kiba dragged Raven into the hospital. "Where's Sakura Haruno?" "She's in that room over there." Kiba literally threw Raven into the hospital room. Raven was flattened against the wall, and then he peeled off like sandpaper. "Oww…" Naruto asked, "What are _you _doing here?" Raven brushed drywall off his shoulder, then replied, "I was knocked out and dragged here against my will." Naruto rolled his eyes. "Sakura's not doing so well. She was coughing up blood earlier." Raven rubbed his forehead. He pushed Naruto out of the way, focused chakra into his hand, and placed his hand on Sakura's stomach. He closed his eyes. "Raven, what the hell are you doing?" "Shut…up…" Raven muttered through his teeth. He shook visibly, as if he had seen the Grim Reaper. Raven opened his eyes. Naruto asked, "What happened?" "Sakura's vital organs…the heart, the stomach, the spleen…all of them are liquefying. Once the…infection hits the heart or the brain…" Raven snapped his fingers. "She'll be gone just like that."

"WHAAAAT?!?" Naruto passed out from the shock. Sakura gulped nervously. Suddenly, she started gagging. "Never Too Late" by Three Days Grace started playing in the background. Raven was thinking, _F! _Sakura threw up a stream of red. Raven started to panic. "Oh my god!! What should I do? What should I do?!?" She got out of her hospital bed and slapped him. "Ow…thanks." Sakura threw up another stream of red, this time with her kidney. Raven looked as if he was going to faint. "Raven, please! Don't let me die like this!" Sakura pleaded. "What do you want me to do?!" "Stab me so I don't have to go through this torture!" The color drained out of Raven's face, looking like Sasuke during the first fight between Kakashi and Zabuza. _Holy shit! Did she just ask me to kill her?_ Sakura threw up another projectile of red, this time with her stomach. "Please, Raven!! Please, let me die in peace!" Raven's mind was in a complete frenzy. "Sakura, I can heal you! Just give me a chance!" "Raven, if you truly love me, you won't let me die like this!" Raven winced. _Dammit! She's right. Dear Lord, forgive me for my sin and have mercy on Sakura. Amen. _Raven unsheathed his sword. Tears burning his eyes, he pulled back his sword…and stabbed Sakura. He didn't have to look to know it was fatal, but he made the mistake of opening his eyes and looking at her. She closed her eyes and smiled. "Raven…thank you for letting me die peacefully." That image would haunt Raven forever.

Meanwhile, Tsunade was getting ready to execute her scheme. "Alright, we all know the plan. Who's going to be 'dead'?" The threesome looked at each other. Koharu and Tsunade said, "Homura." "Why should I fake my death?" Homura protested. "Your trading card sucks, that's why!" Homura Mitomon groaned, then closed his eyes. Tsunade poured ketchup to make it look like a dagger wound had killed him. "Now all we have to do is frame Raven for it!"

Raven had never felt worse in his life than this moment. He had just killed the only girl who had ever loved him. The song changed to "Given Up" by Linkin Park. Raven knelt over Sakura's body and cried. Unfortunately, the tears awoke Naruto, who stirred sleepily. "What happened? Huh? Sakura? SAKURA!" Raven turned liquid to avoid being seen and fled. In his flight, he left his sword behind. Naruto picked up the sword. "Raven…GODDAMN YOU!" Naruto threw the sword out the window and chased after him.

Raven was fleeing to the edge of the forest when Naruto caught up with him. "You bastard! You killed Sakura in cold blood!" Raven whirled around. "No I didn't! She begged me to kill her!" Naruto was stubborn. "Why did you kill her!?" "She asked me to kill her because she was throwing up her organs! Sakura didn't want to go through the pain!" This shocked Naruto out of his tirade. "A-a-asked y-you to k-kill her?" "Yes! How many times do I have to say it!?" Tears were running down Raven's face. "Goodbye, Naruto." Raven leapt away into the wilderness, leaving Naruto standing there. "Whoa…"

_Later that night…_

Tsunade was pacing her office, totally confused. "Where's Raven?!" Koharu shrugged. "I do not know."

Raven was lying on a bed in one of the assassin safehouses located throughout the world. He walked outside, holding a kunai. _Dear Lord, please send death to me. I cannot bear the pain of knowing I killed Sakura. The pain is eating away at my sanity! Please, have mercy on me. Amen. _He was about to stab himself when the kunai was shot out of his hand by a shuriken. "Uchiha? What are you doing here?" Sure enough, Sasuke was standing on a nearby tree. "Why were you about to commit suicide?" "I can't take the pain of the loss of a loved one!" Sasuke had a questioning look on his face. "I…I killed…Sakura." Sasuke nearly fell off the tree. "You did WHAT?" "It wasn't my fault! She asked me to kill her because she was throwing up her organs and didn't want to go through the pain!" Sasuke bowed his head. "Sasuke?" He looked at Raven. "What?" "Thanks for not letting me commit suicide." Sasuke showed the slightest hint of a smile. "You said you were going to help me kill Itachi, remember? I can't let you die now." Raven rolled his eyes. "Oh yeah." "You know where to find me." "Whatever."

_Next time: How will the village react to Sakura's death? What will happen to Raven and Naruto? Find out next chapter!_


	18. Ending of Rising: Part I

Rising

Chapter 13: Raven Has Left the Village

DISCLAIMER: I own Raven Ashcrest. I do not own Naruto, or any of the characters.

The whole village was rocked by Sakura's murder. Everyone, including the Hokage, showed up at the funeral. The entire crowd was wearing black. On top of the coffin were dozens of white roses and a picture. Her parents were kneeling in front of the coffin, crying and praying to God that she made it to heaven. Naruto noticed that Raven wasn't there, so he went to go find Raven.

Raven was standing in front of the memorial stone in Konoha, knowing that there was a new name etched onto it: Sakura Haruno. Rain was pouring down on the site. "What I've Done" by Linkin Park was playing in the background. Naruto walked up and found Raven staring at the stone. "Hey Raven." Raven turned around. "Oh. Hi Naruto."

_In this farewell_

_There's no blood_

_There's no alibi_

Naruto placed his hand on Raven's shoulder. "We all miss her, and it wasn't your fault." Raven sighed. "Easy for you to say. You were unconscious." Naruto rolled his eyes. "I know it hurts, Raven. Just know that I'm here for you." Raven smiled. "Thanks, Naruto. But I don't think the rest of the village is going to agree with you."

_Cause I've drawn regret_

_From the truth_

_Of a thousand lies_

Lee noticed that Naruto and Raven were missing, so he walked to the memorial stone. "Naruto, Raven, why are you not at the funeral?" Raven looked at Lee. "It hurts too much, Lee. I can't go." "But why not?"

_So let mercy come_

_And wash away_

_What I've done_

Raven took a hard gulp. "Lee, I killed Sakura." Lee nearly fainted from the news. The rain began to pour harder. "W-Why did you kill her, Raven? You loved her." Raven's eyes began to burn from the tears.

_I'll face myself_

_To cross out what I've become_

_Erase myself_

_And let go of what I've done_

"Lee, she had a fatal illness. She didn't want to go through the pain. She was throwing up her _organs_, dude. You wouldn't want to take that." Lee bowed his head. "You are right, Raven. But was that the correct call of duty?"

_Put to rest_

_What you thought of me_

_While I clean the slate_

_With the hands of uncertainty_

"I don't know! I truly don't know." Raven was staring at the sky. "I don't understand anything right now! Why Sakura had to die, why I had to kill her, why the Fifth Hokage hates me, why Sasuke saved my life-"Sasuke saved your life? How?" Naruto interrupted.

_So let mercy come_

_And wash away_

_What I've done_

Raven fell to the ground on his knees. "I-I tried to commit suicide in the forest. I couldn't bear Sakura's loss." Lee's jaw dropped. Naruto laughed and said, "Ha! Raven turned into an emo." Lee knocked Naruto out with Leaf Hurricane. "Anyway, Sasuke deflected the kunai that I was going to use…to…" Lee nodded. "I understand, Raven. But the village needs to know the truth. Otherwise, there might be a riot."

_I'll face myself_

_To cross out what I've become_

_Erase myself_

_And let go of what I've done_

Raven closed his eyes and grinned. "Lee, you're right. Wait, how do we know there isn't already a riot?"

At the funeral, the Hokage had managed to rile up the entire crowd against Raven for a "double" murder. "Raven Ashcrest has done unforgivable wrongs to us! But we're not going to take it lying down! We're going to get him back for what he's done! Who's with me?!" There was an enthusiastic roar from the crowd, except for the Konoha 11 still at the funeral.

_For what I've done_

_I start again_

_And whatever pain may come_

_Today this ends_

_I'm forgiving what I've done!!_

Raven had his Raisengan active. "Lee, what are we waiting for?! Let's go! The people need to know the truth!" Lee and Raven jumped back towards the funeral site. Naruto was still unconscious.

_I'll face myself _

_To cross out what I've become_

_Erase myself_

_And let go of what I've done_

Raven and Lee were almost back to the funeral when the entire village surrounded them, complete with torches, ropes, and pitchforks. Lee turned to Raven. "Raven?" "Yeah, Lee?" "How many people are we facing?" "I think about…somewhere over 300."

_What I've done_

_Forgiving what I've done_

Tsunade shouted out, "Raven Ashcrest, you are accused of a double murder! Do you have anything to say?" Raven stepped forward. "Yeah, I do. Sakura was suffering a fatal illness! She didn't want to go through the pain of throwing up her organs, so she asked me to kill her!" "Then why didn't you get a medic?!" Mr. Haruno yelled. "Sakura had less than 12 hours to live! I had offered to heal her! But she refused! She wouldn't listen to me, so she wouldn't listen to licensed professionals either!" Tsunade didn't believe him. "You were dating Sakura, were you not?" Raven shook his head. "We broke up yesterday." Someone shouted out, "Did you kill Sakura for revenge?" Raven responded, "What the f are you smoking? I would never do that! I didn't commit a double murder! I don't even know who the second 'victim' was!"

As if on cue, Homura Mitomon walked in from the Hokage's office. "He's right. The Hokage here asked me to fake my death to get Raven run out of town or killed." The crowd turned from Raven to Tsunade. "Why do you want Raven dead? Why did you fake a senior advisor's death?" The mob started marching towards Tsunade. She backed away from the crowd. Just then, she was shot in the back with a kunai. Nobody knew who did it, but the crowd assumed Raven had thrown the dagger. He was pressed to a tree, surrounded by angry villagers. Raven finally snapped and reappeared above the crowd, phoenix wings glowing brightly.

"So, you want to run me out of town? Then I'll leave-a parting gift! Lightning Style: Tempest Destruction Jutsu!" Immediately, black clouds swirled above the Leaf Village and lightning lashed out at the village, starting multiple fires. The village huddled together to stay out of range. "You don't like lightning? Fine with me. Fire Style: Meteor Shower Jutsu!" Fiery meteors fell at breakneck speeds, massively increasing the size of the fires. The crowd grouped together tighter, away from the inferno. "You people are scared of a little fire? Whatever. Water Style: Typhoon Storm Jutsu!" Torrential rain and tsunamis pounded away at the village and the fires. The mob split apart and climbed trees to avoid being washed away. Raven looked down and shook his head. "Pathetic. Wind Style: Great Breakthrough Jutsu!" A large gust of wind blew into the village, forcing the water out and pounding away at the trees. There was a loud cry from the mob. "Here's ground to stand on! Earth Style: Quake Drop Jutsu!" Raven dove downward and slammed into the earth with his elbow and shoulder, causing an earthquake. The mob was shaken out of the trees and onto the ground. Raven, knowing his work was done, flew away towards the forest. Naruto woke up and ran to the village…and found it absolutely devastated.

Raven landed in the forest and dialed up Santo. "Santo, can you drop my gear off?" "Sure, but you don't have a job to do. Why do you need it?" Raven replied, "That's none of your business." Santo rolled his eyes. "Whatever. Your gear will be there in five minutes." "Alright. Thanks." Raven ended the call and sat down in the forest. _I've destroyed most of the Leaf Village, Sakura is dead, Sasuke is depending on me to help him kill Itachi, Naruto probably hates me for destroying the village, and Lee…is Lee. __Arrgh! What do I do?_ Raven was about to fall asleep when his Darkblade gear parachuted in from the sky. Raven took out the vest and pulled three things out of its pockets: a locket that Sakura had given to him, pictures of his family and friends, and the Fenice de Luna. He had found the Fenice de Sol outside the hospital. Tucking the items into his pockets, he made hand signs for "Fire Style: Dragon's Breath Jutsu!" The fire ignited his Darkblade clothing, which left ashes behind. Raven wandered into a nearby assassin safehouse to talk to the armorsmith. "What do you need?" the armorsmith asked. Raven looked up at the guy and said, "I need new assassin armor." The armorsmith replied, "Any preferences?" Raven thought for a moment and said, "I prefer the armor to be black." The armorsmith jumped on that comment and asked, "Black like the reaper's armor?"

Raven smiled. "Yeah, black reaper armor sounds like a really good choice right now." The armorsmith smiled. "I'll get right on it!" Raven waited at the safehouse for about two hours, and then the armorsmith told him it was ready. He looked at the armor and smiled. "Do you want a scythe to go with it?" Raven nodded and the armorsmith walked into his storage and pulled out a scythe. It had an obsidian blade with a steel edge and a bamboo handle. "I've been saving this for someone who can hold it." "What do you mean?" Raven asked. "Well, the scythe conducts a test for a potential wielder: it swings wildly around to test the user's endurance. If the person succeeds, he or she gets to wield the scythe. If they don't…" The armorsmith ran his finger across his neck. Raven gulped. "Good luck, sonny." The armorsmith handed Raven the scythe. It felt almost natural in Raven's hands. The scythe suddenly began to slice and chop wildly. Raven almost lost it, but regained his grip and held on as tight as he could. The scythe flew out of his hands and looked like it was going to decapitate him…but it swirled around his body instead, as if to indicate that he could wield it. Raven grinned and walked out of the safehouse. He donned the reaper's armor with the scythe across his back, and the sword and dagger at his sides. Raven said to no one in particular, "Darkblade is dead. I…am…Raizan!" With that proud declaration, Raizan jumped away from the safehouse, away from the Leaf Village, away from his old life, and away from everyone he knew.

**END OF RISING: PART I**


	19. Assassin's Gaiden: Chapter 1

Rising: Assassin's Gaiden

Chapter 1: Helping an Old Friend

DISCLAIMER: I own Raven Ashcrest. Kai Windcrest is the property of my friend Linkmasterblade (he has given me permission to use Kai in my fic.) I don't own Naruto, or any of the characters. This is an interim fic between Rising: Part I and Rising: Part II.

It had been a year since Raven left the Leaf Village. He looked like any normal 16-year-old kid on the outside, but his mind was in a state of confusion and turmoil. His brain and heart were continually warring over the decisions he made in the past year. He was now considered an S-Class Rogue Ninja, which meant the Anbu were constantly after him. Raven still had his headset, melded into his reaper's armor. It rang all of a sudden. Raven answered with "Hello? Who is this?" "I'm Kai Windcrest. Who the hell are you?" Raven was shocked. "Kai? Is that you, buddy? It's me, Raven." There was a long silence on the other side of the line. Eventually, there was a "Hey Raven! Long time no hear! What have you been doing?" Raven grinned. "Well, I'm an S-Class Rouge Ninja now." "How the hell did you do that?" "I'd rather not talk about it."

"OK. Listen, can you do me a favor?" Raven rolled his eyes. "What did you get yourself into?" "I got myself in jail after a botched assassination." Raven smacked his head. "You want me to bust you out." "No, I want you to distract the guards while I get out of my cell. I have a secret tunnel leading into the open." Raven mulled over this for a while. "Alright. What prison are you in?" "Suna Correctional Facility." "In the Land of Wind?!" Kai sighed. "Where else did you expect me to be? Konoha?" Ignoring that, Raven leapt away towards the Hidden Sand Village.

_3 hours later…_

Kai was pacing in his cell when he got a call from Raven. "Hey Kai, what cell block are you in?" "Block C, Cell 104." "Got it. See you there." Raven made sure to keep his hood up. He was stopped at the gate by two guards. "What business do you have here?" Raven replied, "I have execution orders for Kai Windcrest from the Kazekage." The guards looked at him and said, "Where are the papers?" Raven checked his pockets and shrugged. "I think they fell out of my pocket." "Nice try. You're coming with us, buddy." One of the guards grabbed him by the arm. The other walked behind him. Raven grinned evilly. "Bad move." He turned liquid and disappeared. "Where'd he go?!?" Raven grabbed the two guards and knocked their heads together. They fainted. He stayed liquid and snuck into the prison.

Raven turned solid and walked over to the bail officer's desk. "What can I do for you?" "How much is bail for Kai Windcrest?" The officer consulted his sheet. "You can't pay for it. His bail is $500,000." Raven pulled out a check worth $500,000. "Holy crap, you can pay it! Wait a minute…this is a bogus check! You're under arrest!" Raven sneered. "You think you can catch me?" He turned liquid. The bail officer was massively confused. "What are you, a magician!?" Raven slit the officer's throat. The officer just happened to fall on the security button. An alarm went off. Raven and Kai looked at the button and said, "Aw, shit!" Kai jumped down the tunnel, leaving Raven to fight off the security guards. Twenty guards surrounded him with batons and tazers. Just then, the inmates of Block C knocked out the guards and took their weapons. One of the inmates told Raven, "Thanks to the riot you started, we're free! Finally!" The inmates dashed out of the prison doors. Raven was about to leave when he noticed a beautiful blonde girl sleeping in her cell. _Wow…thank you God. _He took the keys and unlocked her cell. She stirred groggily. "What happened?" "You're free along with the other inmates. Come on, or the guards might wake up." She got up and ran out of the prison, but not before thanking Raven. When she got out, however, more guards surrounded her. She took them out without breaking a sweat. Raven couldn't believe what he just witnessed. That was the fighting style of an assassin! She motioned for Raven to follow her. Raven just shrugged and went on.

While the two were leaping away, Raven asked, "Who are you?" The girl turned to him and replied, "I'm Nika Princeton. You're Raizan, right?" Raven nodded. "But my friends call me Raven. Raizan is my alias." Raven then asked, "You fight with the style of an assassin. Where did you learn it?" Nika told him, "I learned right here in the Sand Village. What about you?" "I'm originally from the Mist Village." Just then, his headset rang. "Raven, where are you?" Raven winced. He had forgotten about Kai busting out. "I'm almost to the safehouse on the Leaf-Sand border." "I'll meet you there. Later."

_30 minutes later…_

Raven walked inside the safehouse with Nika. "Hey, Raven!" Kaiba waved at him. "Oh, hey Kaiba! What's up?" Kaiba shook his head. "Nothing much, dude. Who's your ladyfriend?" Nika walked over to Kaiba and introduced herself. He gave a thumbs-up to Raven. Raven just smacked his head. Kai walked in and gave Raven a crescent kick to the head. "Ow! What the hell, Kai?!" "That's for forgetting to meet up outside the prison." That's when Kai saw Nika. "Dude, she was in the same cell block as me! How'd she get out?" "I jacked the keys off one of the guards and freed her." Kai nudged Raven in the ribs. "Dude, Nika is hot. Why don't you ask her out?" Raven replied, "Dude, I have no chance with her! I'm not going to ask her out." "Oh, you're not acting on impulse for once?" Raven told Kai, "Not unless you've stopped smoking." Kai shot Raven the evil eye. Nika walked over to them. "Hey Raven, thanks for breaking me out." "You're welcome, Nika." "Hey, you want to go see a movie?" Raven looked at Kai and he nodded. "Sure! What time?" "Does 8:00 work?" Raven smiled and nodded. "See you then!" She ran outside; she had just gotten a contract. It was 6:35 pm. "Whoa. I did _not_ see that coming." Kai mockingly asked, "What, are you psychic now?" Raven shook his head. "No, but you're telekinetic."

_At the movies…_

Raven had changed into a t-shirt and jeans. He was waiting at the snack bar when Nika walked in. "Hey, Raven!" She was wearing a tanktop and a skirt. "What movie do you want to see?" "How does _Epic Movie 2 _sound?" She nodded. Raven handed the cashier a $20, got two tickets and two sodas. Raven and Nika were in the third-to-last row. He didn't understand why Nika picked the back of the theater. Just then, 10 Anbu dropped in from the ceilings. "Where are you, Raizan?!" Nika turned to Raven. "They're looking for you!"

Raven dug into his pockets and groaned. "Damn. I don't have blinding powder." Nika pulled a little steel ball out of her pocket. "This is blinding powder." She threw it at the ceiling and a flurry of white powder rained down on the audience. The distraction was enough for Raven to change into his Raizan gear. The Anbu were still trying to get the powder out of their eyes. Raizan glided down the railing, scythe at the ready. He leapt off and spun in midair, decapitating two Anbu. The other eight formed a tight circle around him. The closest Anbu to Raizan slashed at him with a sword. Raizan sliced the sword in half and impaled the Anbu with the Fenice de Luna. One of the Anbu performed the Paralysis Jutsu. Raizan countered the Jutsu with his Raisengan. He trapped the Anbu in an illusion of his own, which left them trapped. Then he simply whipped out his scythe and in one swift movement, they were dead. Raizan turned liquid and snuck back up the stairs.

Using a smoke bomb, Raven changed back into his normal clothes. "Hey, Nika." Nika replied, "I don't think I've seen 10 Anbu die that quickly." Raven smiled. "What was that contract all about?" Nika hesitantly answered, "It was a contract for Zane Shimamura, an Akatsuki member." Raven just about snapped into the phoenix. "Are you serious?!" She nodded and added, "I wounded him, but he disappeared before I could kill him." Raven then decided to ask, "Nika, why did you pick the almost-back row to sit in?" She grinned. "I was hoping you'd ask that." Nika then gave Raven a quick kiss. Raven flipped into the air because he was so happy. Nika giggled at his exaggerated reaction. Just then, his headset rang. "Raven? You there?" "What is it, Kai?" "Someone by the name of Sasuke Uchiha is at the safehouse and is looking for you." Raven grimaced. "Oh hell. I'll be right there."

Nika asked Raven what was wrong. "Nika, I'm really sorry, but I have to go. Someone at the safehouse is looking for me." She sighed and then said, "Why don't I go with you?" Raven thought about this and told her after a while, "Alright. But watch your back. Something is wrong…I know it."

_Next time: What's got Raven on edge? Why is Sasuke at the safehouse? Find out next chapter! _


	20. The Rising Christmas Special!

The Rising Christmas Special!

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Happy Holidays to everybody-including the faithful readers! I own Raven Ashcrest. Kai Windcrest is the property of my friend Linkmasterblade (he has given me permission to use Kai in my fic.) I don't own Naruto, or any of the characters.

Backstory: The Hyuga Clan has decided to hold a Christmas party-and everyone is invited! Meanwhile, Raven, Nika, and Kai celebrate the holidays at a nearby safehouse.

Hinata was up on a ladder, making sure that the "Merry Christmas!" banner would stay in place. Neji scanned every square inch of the house with his Byakugan, checking for the holly, the refreshments, and the decorations. BRRRRRRRRRRRINGGGGG!!! "I got it!" Neji sprinted to the door and opened it up. Naruto walked in, whistling at the festiveness of the house. "Damn, you guys went all out for the party!" Hinata turned around and saw Naruto. "Oh, hi, N-Naruto." He acknowledged her with a wave. Neji thought she was going to faint from the look on her face. Just then, the doorbell rang again. This time, it was Lee and Tenten. "Neji! YAYYYY!" Tenten immediately jumped on Neji, knocking him to the floor. "Ouch…hi, Tenten." Neji said weakly. Lee bowed before entering the Hyuga household. "Merry Christmas, Neji, Hinata. The house looks amazing."

_In a safehouse nearby…_

"Merry Christmas, buddy!" "You too, dude!" The assassins currently there were drinking and partying and having a merry time. Raven was hanging outside, repeatedly striking some trees. Kai walked out, a cigarette dangling out the corner of his mouth. "Raven, come on. You've been out here for two hours. Don't you think it's time to come in and join the party?" Raven replied, "Nah. I don't want to mess around with the alcohol right now-or the _tobacco_." Kai clenched his fists. Raven continued the conversation by saying; "Besides, no one's here to celebrate with. I miss everyone from the Leaf Village: Naruto, Lee, Kiba, Neji, and Sakura…" At this point, Raven fell to the ground, nearly in tears. Kai replied, "Raven, you can celebrate with Nika and I. Dude, how can you pass up a party like this?" With that, Kai walked back inside the safehouse, ready to party it up Christmas style.

_Back at the __Hyuga__ residence…_

Shikamaru, Ino, and Choji had arrived during the safehouse piece. Naruto was dancing to Christmas music (don't ask). Lee and Tenten were decorating the Christmas tree. Neji and Hinata were busy in the kitchen, the snacks almost ready. Just then, a shout split the air. "Akamaru, what are you doing!? Stop! WHOAAAA-OOF!" Kiba had just smacked into the door, chasing after Akamaru. Shino followed behind him, stopping a few inches away from Kiba. Naruto ran over and opened the door. Akamaru immediately bounced into the house towards the kitchen. Kiba got up, brushed off some dirt, and walked inside with the same reaction as Naruto. "Wow! This place looks great!" Shino crept in silently behind him.

_To the safehouse_

Raven was still outside, thinking about the fun times he had with Sakura: their first kiss, the lake, the carnival. He wished for one more day with her, just one more day to see her again, hear her voice. But then he realized that he needed to move on. Suddenly, he heard a rustling in the trees. He got up, every sense on alert, when Nika wrapped her arms around him from behind. "Merry Christmas, Raven." She whispered into his ear. He replied, "Merry Christmas, Nika." She let go of him and asked, "Why aren't you inside partying?" Raven shook his head. "I don't know. I'm just not in the holiday spirit, and I can't figure out why." "Maybe there's something-or someone-you need to let go of. Just ignore those memories-at least for Christmas. Please, Raven?" Raven told Nika, "Do you hear yourself? You sound like Dr. Phil! Unfortunately, I think you're right." The song in the background became _Almost Easy _by Avenged Sevenfold.

_I feel insane _

_Every single time I'm asked to compromise_

_'__Cause__ I'm afraid and stuck in my ways_

_And that's the way it stays_

Inside the Hyuga residence, everyone had their fill of snacks and the Christmas tree was virtually finished: all that was missing was the star. Naruto volunteered to put it on. He held it gingerly, as if it depended on his life (it did). He was almost to the steps when he tripped on the power cord and fell. The star flew out of his grasp and into the wall, shattering into a million pieces. Neji stood up, extremely pissed off. "Get ready to die, Naruto."

_So how long did I expect love to outweigh ignorance?_

_By the look on your face I may have forced the scale to tip_

_I'm not insane, I'm not insane_

_I'm not__ insane, I'm not__…not insane_

Raven looked deep inside himself, to the source of his pain: his memories of Sakura. He knew in order to enjoy the holidays, he had to let go of his memories and move on. He sighed, closed his eyes and focused. Slowly, the memories faded from his mind, as if they were thrown into a lake. But then, something disrupted him and he fell to the ground, writhing in intense pain.

_Come back to me, it's almost easy_

_Come back again, it's almost easy_

Naruto stood up, backing away from the steaming Neji. Tenten tried to calm him down, but she was blown away by a violent burst of chakra. Naruto cloned himself until there were 20 Narutos, then they all raced off in different directions, confusing Neji for a few seconds. He quickly recovered, activated the Byakugan, and sped towards the first Naruto he saw.

_Shame pulses through my heart from the things I've done to you_

_It's hard to face but the fact remains that this is nothing new_

_I left you bound an__d tied with suicidal memories_

_Selfish beneath the skin but deep inside I'm not insane_

Raven had been impaled with three senbon: one grazed his neck, causing blood to spurt; another pierced his stomach, and the third pierced his right lung. He knew he was dying from a combination of shame, bodily injury, and attachment. Nika screamed for help. Kai bowled through several drunken assassins to reach his friend. "What happened?!?" "He was hit in vital points by needles! Are you a medic-nin?!" Kai shook his head sadly. Raven saw a white light and thought, _I'll finally see you again, Sakura._

_I'm not insane, I'm not insane_

_I'm not__ insane, I'm not__…__not insane_

Neji had already taken out seven clones, and he raced upstairs towards three more. Meanwhile, the actual Naruto was hiding underneath the house, waiting for the perfect opportunity to knock Neji out and stop his rampage. "Show yourself, Naruto!" Neji cried as he killed three clones with Rotation.

_Come back to me, it's almost easy_

_Come back again, it's almost easy_

_Come back to me, it's almost easy_

_Come back again, it's almost easy_

As if by some divine miracle, a white light encompassed Raven. It removed the senbon and healed his bleeding lung, his injured stomach, and closed the laceration on his neck. Raven was tenderly lowered to the ground, then the light disappeared in a blinding flash. Nika and Kai couldn't believe what just happened. Raven had died and resurrected before their very eyes!

_Now that I've lost you it kills me to say_

_I've tried to hold on as you've slowly slipped away_

_I'm losing the __fight,__ I've treated you so wrong_

_Now let me make it right_

Raven woke up to the loving embrace of Nika and the truly relieved look from Kai. He stared towards heaven high and thought: _Thank you, Sakura. You saved me all in the spirit of love and compassion. Now it's my turn to spread that joy. _Raven turned liquid, escaped Nika's embrace, and leapt away towards the Leaf Village. Meanwhile, a divine glow sped towards the Hyuga household, for reasons unknown.

_I'm not insane, I'm not insane_

_I'm not insane, I'm not…not insane_

Neji's rampage of doom had finally ended, all of Naruto's clones gone. Naruto had actually climbed up the wall and into one of the upstairs rooms. It was a gloomy mood until, for some astonishing motive, there was a brand new star shining atop the tree. There was a knock at the door. Kiba ran over to answer it…and it was Sakura.

_Come back to me, it's almost easy_

_Come back again, it's almost easy_

_Come back to me, it's almost easy_

_Come back again, it's almost easy_

Kiba's jaw slammed into the floor. Everybody stared at the door in disbelief. Naruto walked downstairs and asked, "What's going on?" He turned around and saw Sakura, untouched by the cold embrace of death. He pointed at her, shouted "NOOO WAAAAAAAAAAAY!!!", and fainted. She walked in, as beautiful and confident as ever. "Merry Christmas, everyone!" she said. Naruto had managed to recover from the shock of seeing Sakura. He walked over to her and said, "Hey, Sakura. You look surprisingly beautiful." She blushed at the compliment. Just then, mistletoe appeared over Naruto and Sakura. Raven, in liquid form, had planted the mistletoe, not knowing who was under it. Naruto shrugged and leaned in. Sakura embraced Naruto and kissed him. Oh, what a Christmas it was for Naruto!

**THE END**


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